Cellulose has found only limited biotechnology applications due to its high crystallinity and poor enzymatic degradability. To address these challenges, we have metabolically and genetically engineered the cellulose producing bacterium Gluconacetobacter xylinus to incorporate N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNac) into cellulose microfbrils during biosynthesis. The UDP-GlcNac biosynthetic operon from the fungus Candida albicans was imported into G. xylinus. Quantification of intracellular metabolites using tandem mass spectrometry and HPLC confirmed elevated levels of both GlcNac and UDP-GlcNac in the engineered strain compared to the wildtype. Wide angle X-ray diffraction and FTIR showed low crystallinity in the modified cellulose produced from the engineered cells when compared with cellulose from wild-type cells. The reduced crystallinity resulted in more rapid enzymatic hydrolysis and in vivo degradability opening up several new applications for this novel copolymer.

Genetic and metabolic engineering of an <i>in vivo</i>-degradable bacterial cellulose copolymer

239th National Meeting (2010)

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