CyaPlas - 2nd place in Science2Start competition

The winners of the Science2Start Ideas Competition 2021 were announced in early December. Second and third place went to researchers from the University of Tübingen. 

Second place went to the project “CyaPlas - Nachhaltiges Bioplastik aus Sonnenlicht und CO2.” Karl Forchhammer, CMFI Principal Investigator from the Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine at the University of Tübingen, together with Dr. Moritz Koch (former CMFI member), is conducting research on the polymer PHB (polyhydroxybutyrate), which is characterized by good biodegradability and processing properties. The polymer is derived from cyanobacteria, also known as microalgae. The scientists succeeded in increasing the intracellular content of PHB in the bacteria to over 80 percent of the cell dry mass by means of genetic engineering adaptations. This process would require almost only CO2, water and sunlight for the production of bioplastics, which is both efficient and cost-effective.