Presentation for my microbiology class which connects a pop science article to the research behind it.

1. Renewable Propane Generated with E. Coli
Bacteria
Ryan Whitman, 2014. geek.com

2. An Engineered Pathway for
the Biosynthesis of
Renewable Propane
Pauli Kallio et al., 2014. Nature.

3. Introduction
Biofuels:
- >.5% of global fuel supply
- challenges of producing economically &
energy-efficient biofuels
Scientists were able to engineer a biochemical
pathway that produces propane using E. coli
bacteria

4. Hypothesis
- E. coli biochemical pathways could be a viable source for
the production of renewable propane in the future.
thinkgeek.com

5. Mechanism
- E. coli hosted set of genes that allowed them
to extract butyric acid
- Using variants of enzymes thioesterase and
CAR converts butyric acid to butyraldehyde
- ADO converts to butyraldehyde propane

6. Kallio et al., 2014

7. Results
- Scientists were able to generate small
amounts of propane
- After several minutes a plateau in production
was reached
- Depends on oxygen availability, electron
availability, and competition with the host
metabolism

8. Implications
- Could be renewable energy source someday
(Yay!)
- Propane is a relatively clean burner but still
emits greenhouse gases
- Could production of propane in this manner
be cost-efficient?

9. Sources
Kalli, P., Pasztor, A., Thiel, K., Akhtar,
K., and Jones, P. 2014. An engineered
pathway for the biosynthesis of
renewable propane. Nature
Whitman, R. (2014, Sept. 5).
Renewable propane generated with E.
Coli bacteria. Retrieved from http:
//www.geek.com/science/renewable-
propane-generated-with-e-coli-
bacteria-1603584/