This technology involves a strain and production composition that establishes a 1,2-propylene glycol biosynthetic pathway by transforming methylotrophic bacteria with a recombinant vector containing the methylglyoxal synthase (mgsA), glycerol dehydrogenase (gldA), and methylglyoxal reductase (yqhD) genes. The target substance is obtained by culturing the bacteria in NMS medium using methanol as a carbon source.
Most 1,2-propylene glycol is currently produced via petrochemical processes, which generate harmful intermediates and byproducts during propylene oxide conversion and hydrolysis. Microbial fermentation using E. coli or yeast relies on sugars like glucose or glycerol, leading to issues with rising raw material costs and competition with food resources.
This technology introduces foreign genes, including Bacillus subtilis-derived methylglyoxal synthase, into Methylobacterium extorquens strains that do not naturally produce 1,2-propylene glycol, enabling the production of the target substance from inexpensive, highly soluble methanol. Since it does not use sugar as a substrate, it reduces risks of food competition and fermentation contamination. Applicable to the production of antifreeze, polyester resins, cosmetics, and detergent ingredients, it secures an eco-friendly process for converting methanol derived from shale or biogas into high-value chemical raw materials.
This invention was developed with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT's C1 Gas Conversion Technology common research project.
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