Unlocking the potentials of cyanobacterial photosynthesis for directly converting carbon dioxide into glucose

Shanshan Zhang, Jiahui Sun, Dandan Feng, Huili Sun, Jinyu Cui, Xuexia Zeng, Yannan Wu, Guodong Luan () and Xuefeng Lu ()
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Shanshan Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jiahui Sun: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Dandan Feng: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Huili Sun: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jinyu Cui: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xuexia Zeng: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yannan Wu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Guodong Luan: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xuefeng Lu: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract Glucose is the most abundant monosaccharide, serving as an essential energy source for cells in all domains of life and as an important feedstock for the biorefinery industry. The plant-biomass-sugar route dominates the current glucose supply, while the direct conversion of carbon dioxide into glucose through photosynthesis is not well studied. Here, we show that the potential of Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 for photosynthetic glucose production can be unlocked by preventing native glucokinase activity. Knocking out two glucokinase genes causes intracellular accumulation of glucose and promotes the formation of a spontaneous mutation in the genome, which eventually leads to glucose secretion. Without heterologous catalysis or transportation genes, glucokinase deficiency and spontaneous genomic mutation lead to a glucose secretion of 1.5 g/L, which is further increased to 5 g/L through metabolic and cultivation engineering. These findings underline the cyanobacterial metabolism plasticities and demonstrate their applications for supporting the direct photosynthetic production of glucose.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39222-w

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