Current Uses of Synthetic Biology
Today, most organic chemicals are derived from petroleum. Fredrick Frank, Vice Chairman, Peter J. Solomon Company, offers this perspective on the sustainable chemistry industry: “Several published reports have concluded that about two-thirds of those chemicals can be generated from renewable raw materials, rather than from oil. If so, sustainable chemistry potentially has a market size of about $1 trillion. Less than 7 percent of organic chemicals are currently produced from renewable materials, thus there is an opportunity for long-term growth.”
Developing a Suite of Biobased Products and Services
DSM, a Life Sciences and Materials Sciences company headquartered in the Netherlands, was one of the first companies to utilize synthetic biology, dramatically improving an existing process for commercial production of Cephalexin, a synthetic antibiotic. Starting with a penicillin-producing microbial strain, DSM introduced and optimized two enzyme-encoding genes for a one-step direct fermentation of adipoyl-7-ADCA, which could then be converted into Cephalexin via two enzymatic steps. The new process replaced a 13-step chemical process, resulting in significant cost and energy savings. DSM has gone on to build a business in antibiotics, vitamins, enzymes, organic acids, and performance materials within one of its emerging business areas called Biobased Products and Services.
Major biotechnology advances are opening up opportunities in the production of biofuels and renewable chemicals as well as materials made from different types of renewable biomass. Recent DSM breakthroughs include a cocktail of enzymes that break down the lignocellulose from agricultural residues to simple C5 and C6 sugars. Advances in synthetic biology have enabled DSM to develop recombinant yeast capable of co-fermenting both hexoses and pentoses. DSM introduced enzymes from native xylose-assimilating organisms to S. cerevisiae, allowing co-fermentation of xylose and arabinose along with glucose. Recently DSM announced a 50/50 joint venture with a major ethanol producer, POET for the commercial development, demonstration and licensing of cellulosic bio-ethanol.
Similarly, starting in 2007, the use of synthetic biology methods allowed DSM to develop proprietary yeast that can operate in a low pH fermentation system to cost effectively produce high-quality biobased succinic acid. This patented process in collaboration with Roquette Frères will be scaled in a 10 kiloton plant in 2012 and new markets are expected to open with this 4-carbon chemical building block. More recently, similar work using both biotechnology and chemistry synergistically is resulting in the development of renewable adipic acid, a 6-carbon diacid that is a key monomer for applications in engineering plastics, textiles, resins, and polyurethanes. The value proposition for the industry with these new routes are cost advantaged economics, renewable feedstock flexibility, and a significant improvement in the carbon footprint measured by Life Cycle Analysis.
In summary, DSM’s long track record in anti-infectives and vitamins combined with an ever growing experience base in synthetic biology have strengthened DSM’s overall capabilities to work with partners and industry stakeholders along the emerging value chains.
Engineering Low-Cost Sugars for Petroleum Substitute
Sugars from non-food biomass can be used as building blocks to manufacture a wide variety of biofuels and renewable chemicals that are currently produced from expensive and price-volatile petroleum feedstocks. The advanced biofuels market is estimated to grow to 21 billion gallons by 2022, based on the U.S. Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.
Traditional sugar fermentation processes to produce biofuels and renewable chemicals use either sucrose from sugarcane or starch from corn, sorghum, or wheat. Agrivida’s engineered biomass provides greater price stability for raw materials, uses less energy in producing biofuels and renewable chemicals via fermentation and enables production with dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions.
INzyme™ technology from Agrivida, a novel approach to synthetic biology, provides processors and biorefiners the ability to directly control dormant biodegrading enzymes that have been engineered into the biomass. After harvest, these enzymes are activated in a way that greatly reduces the energy, chemical and other pretreatments traditionally required to convert the plant material to sugar. Agrivida’s INzyme™ technology decreases a critical bottleneck in bioproducts production, allowing significantly improved production, reducing the cost and quantity of enzymes needed to produce cellulosic biofuels and renewable chemicals and reducing production facility capital and operating costs.
Ultimately, INzyme™ technology from Agrivida will allow consumers to fully realize the potential of a replacement for petroleum-based biofuels and renewable chemicals that have significant benefits in greater national security through reduced dependence on imported petroleum, lower greenhouse gas emissions and significant agricultural and manufacturing jobs creation. Importantly, Agrivida anticipates that its technology platform will provide consumers a considerable cost savings between 70 and 80 cents per gallon of biofuels produced.
