2023-08-16 マックス・プランク研究所
◆合成光合成はATPというエネルギー通貨を必要とし、Erbらは電流を通じてATPを生成する酵素カスケード「AAAサイクル」を開発。これにより、炭素固定やエネルギー豊富な化合物の合成が可能となり、持続可能なエネルギーとしての展望が広がる。
<関連情報>
- https://www.mpg.de/20733252/0809-terr-electricity-driving-life-153410-x?c=11863417
- https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(23)00310-0
自然界に存在しない新しい電気生物学的モジュールで電気からATPを生産する ATP production from electricity with a new-to-nature electrobiological module
Shanshan Luo,David Adam,Simone Giaveri,Sebastian Barthel,Stefano Cestellos-Blanco,Dominik Hege,Nicole Paczia,Leonardo Castañeda-Losada,Melanie Klose,Fabian Arndt,Johann Heider,Tobias J. Erb
Joule Published:August 16, 2023
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joule.2023.07.012
Highlights
•Synthetic biology approach to power biological systems directly from electricity
•A synthetic enzyme cascade for converting electrical energy into ATP
•Regeneration of ATP and other biological energy storage molecules from electricity
•Electricity-driven information processing (transcription) and protein synthesis
Context & scale
Renewable electricity, as a clean energy carrier, can also be an energy source for biological systems. However, to directly power biological systems with electricity, electrical energy needs to be converted into ATP, the universal energy currency of life. Using synthetic biology, we designed a minimal “electrobiological module,” the AAA cycle, that allows direct regeneration of ATP from electricity. The AAA cycle is a multi-step cascade of 3–4 enzymes that does not require any membranes and can be interfaced with many different applications. We show how ATP and other biological energy storage molecules can be produced continuously at -0.6 V and further demonstrate that more complex biological processes, such as RNA and protein synthesis from DNA, can also be powered by electricity. Our synthetic electrobiological module provides a direct interface between electricity and biology, and opens up new avenues for electricity-driven biological systems for a sustainable future.
Summary
Electricity is paramount to the technical world and plays an increasingly important role as a future energy carrier. Yet, it is not widely used to directly power biological systems. Here, we designed a new-to-nature electrobiological module, the acid/aldehyde ATP cycle (AAA cycle), for the direct conversion of electrical energy into ATP. The AAA cycle contains a minimum set of enzymes and does not require membrane-based charge separation. Realizing a propionate-based version of the AAA cycle, we demonstrate continuous, electricity-driven regeneration of ATP and other energy storage molecules from -0.6 V vs. SHE at 2.7 μmol cm-2 h-1 and faradaic efficiencies of up to 47%. Notably, the AAA cycle is compatible with complex cell-free systems, such as in vitro transcription/translation, powering the processing of biological information directly from electricity. This new link between the technical and biological worlds opens several possibilities for future applications in synthetic biology, electrobiotechnology, and bioelectrocatalysis.
