ETH researchers improve bacterial production of cellulose

Researchers from the Department of Materials Science at ETH Zurich have been experimenting with the cellulose-producing bacterium Komagataeibacter sucrofermentans. The aim of the series of experiments was to find a mutation of the bacterium that would result in an increased, industrially usable production of cellulose.

According to a press release, André Studart's team produced up to 40,000 variants of the original bacterium in a first evolutionary step. These were irradiated with ultraviolet light in another facility and then stored in a darkroom to prevent any genetic repair.
The researchers then added nutrient solutions to the new cultures and observed cellulose production. Four mutants were found to produce up to 70 percent more cellulose than the original form. Genetic tests showed that all four types of bacteria had changes in the same gene. This gene is responsible for the breakdown of proteins, a protease. "We suspect that this protease breaks down proteins that regulate cellulose production. Without this regulation, the cell can no longer stop the process," Julie Laurent, a doctoral student in the department, is quoted as saying in the press release.

Study leader Studart is convinced that the process can also be transferred to other types of bacteria. A patent application has been filed for both the process and the mutated bacterial variants. ce/eb