Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2019 Mar 27;19(6):463-470.
doi: 10.1002/elsc.201800133. eCollection 2019 Jun.

Lignin valorization meets synthetic biology

Renkuan Zhang  1   2 , Chen-Hui Zhao  1   2 , Han-Chen Chang  1   2 , Meng-Zhe Chai  1   2 , Bing-Zhi Li  1   2 , Ying-Jin Yuan  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Lignin valorization meets synthetic biology

Renkuan Zhang et al. Eng Life Sci. .

Abstract

Lignin, an abundant renewable resource in nature, is a highly heterogeneous biopolymer consisting of phenylpropanoid units. It is essential for sustainable utilization of biomass to convert lignin to value-added products. However, there are technical obstacles for lignin valorization due to intrinsic heterogeneity. The emerging of synthetic biology technologies brings new opportunities for lignin breakdown and utilization. In this review, we discussed the applications of synthetic biology on lignin conversion, especially the production of value-added products, such as aromatic chemicals, ring-cleaved chemicals from lignin-derived aromatics and bio-active substances. Synthetic biology will offer new potential strategies for lignin valorization by optimizing lignin degradation enzymes, building novel artificial converting pathways, and improving the chassis of model microorganisms.

Keywords: artificial pathway; bio‐degradation; lignin valorization; synthetic biology; value‐added products.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The framework of synthetic biology applied in lignin valorization
Figure 2
Figure 2
The synthesis route of chemicals from lignin‐derived aromatic molecule. (A) The aromatic chemicals. (B) The ring‐cleaved chemicals. (C) The bio‐active substances. R‐groups for Flavonoids R1 = R2: Pinocembrin, R1 = OH, R2 = H: Naringenin, R1 = R2 = OH: Eriodictyol; for Coumarins R1 = R2 = OH: Esculetin, R1 = OCH3, R2 = OH: Scopoletin; For Stilbenoids R1 = R2 = H: Pinosylvin, R1 = OH, R2 = H: Resveratol; R1 = R2 = OH: Piceatannol
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ragauskas, A. J. , Beckham, G. T. , Biddy, M. J. , Chandra, R. et al., Lignin valorization: improving lignin processing in the biorefinery. Science 2014, 344, 1246843. - PubMed
    1. Ralph, J. , Hydroxycinnamates in lignification. Phytochem. Rev. 2009, 9, 65–83.
    1. Sainsbury, P. D. , Hardiman, E. M. , Ahmad, M. , Otani, H. et al., Breaking down lignin to high‐value chemicals: the conversion of lignocellulose to vanillin in a gene deletion mutant of Rhodococcus jostii RHA1. ACS Chem. Biol. 2013, 8, 2151–2156. - PubMed
    1. Tuck, C. O. , Perez, E. , Horvath, I. T. , Sheldon, R. A. , Poliakoff, M. , Valorization of biomass: deriving more value from waste. Science 2012, 337, 695–699. - PubMed
    1. Zakzeski, J. , Bruijnincx, P. C. A. , Jongerius, A. L. , Weckhuysen, B. M. , The catalytic valorization of lignin for the production of renewable chemicals. Chem. Rev. 2010, 110, 3552–3599. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources