Starting with an ATCC strain of Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum, one gene (pta) involved in intron splicing was removed, and another gene (ptb 1) was modified by protein desing. The resulting homobutanol fermenting strain produced n-butanol with 85 mol% yield compared to 55 mol% of the parent strain. Nippon Shokubai is Japan’s largest producer of super adsorbent resin for disposable diapers (600,000 t/y) and has built a new R&D building close to its Osaka Suita Factory, where the researchers from its Tsukuba R&D center will be moved. The academic partner at Kobe is Prof. Akihiko KONDO.
Masayoshi Masayama, presentation at JSBBA annual meeting 2017, March 18
Nippon Shokubai and Kobe University improve butanol fermentation to 85 mol% by genome editing