Volume 219, 2019

Poly(alkyl glycidyl ether) hydrogels for harnessing the bioactivity of engineered microbes

Abstract

Herein, we describe a method to produce yeast-laden hydrogel inks for the direct-write 3D printing of cuboidal lattices for immobilized whole-cell catalysis. A poly(alkyl glycidyl ether)-based triblock copolymer was designed to have three important features for this application: (1) a temperature response, which allowed for facile processing of the material; (2) a shear response, which facilitated the extrusion of the material through a nozzle; and (3) UV light induced polymerization, which enabled the post-extrusion chemical crosslinking of network chains, and the fabrication of robust printed objects. These three key stimuli responses were confirmed via rheometrical characterization. A genetically-engineered yeast strain with an upregulated α-factor production pathway was incorporated into the hydrogel ink and 3D printed. The immobilized yeast cells exhibited adequate viability of 87.5% within the hydrogel. The production of the upregulated α-factor was detected using a detecting yeast strain and quantified at 268 nM (s = 34.6 nM) over 72 h. The reusability of these bioreactors was demonstrated via immersion of the yeast-laden hydrogel lattice in fresh SC media and confirmed by the detection of similar amounts of upregulated α-factor at 259 nM (s = 45.1 nM). These yeast-laden materials represent an attractive opportunity for whole-cell catalysis of other high-value products in a sustainable and continuous manner.

Graphical abstract: Poly(alkyl glycidyl ether) hydrogels for harnessing the bioactivity of engineered microbes

Associated articles

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
14 Feb 2019
Accepted
05 Mär 2019
First published
06 Mär 2019

Faraday Discuss., 2019,219, 58-72

Author version available

Poly(alkyl glycidyl ether) hydrogels for harnessing the bioactivity of engineered microbes

T. G. Johnston, C. R. Fellin, A. Carignano and A. Nelson, Faraday Discuss., 2019, 219, 58 DOI: 10.1039/C9FD00019D

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