Photobiological production of hydrogen using cyanobacteria
Year: 1995
Type: article
Abstract: Cyanobacteria are capable of generating hydrogen using sunlight and water. In both Spirulina and Anabaena, there is a soluble reversible hydrogenase that is involved in hydrogen evolution under anaerobic conditions in the dark. In addition, the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena produces hydrogen as a by-product of nitrogen fixation. Most of this hydrogen is recaptured by a membrane-bound uptake hydrogenase present in Anabaena cells. Experiments have continued to develop a gene transfer system in Spirulina in preparation for improved hydrogen production via genetic manipulation of the reversible hydrogenase. We have identified and characterized four restriction enzymes in Spirulina and cloned the genes for two methylases that protect their own DNA from cleavage by restriction enzymes. We have also cloned and sequenced parts of hupB and hupM genes involved in the synthesis of uptake hydrogenase in Anabaena. Successful cloning of these hup genes represents an important and necessary step in our project because this will enable us to construct Anabaena strains with enhanced hydrogen production ability by disrupting the hup genes involved in hydrogen uptake. We are also setting up a bio-reactor to determine the amount of hydrogen released by different Spirulina and Anabaena strains under different physiological conditions.
Language: English
Field: Energy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2469783149