• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제9권1호
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• pp.1-8
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• 1999

Most carbohydrates exist in nature in an insoluble state, which reduces their susceptibility towards various carbohydrases. Accordingly, they require intensive pretreatment for structural modification to enhance an enzyme reaction. The direct conversion of insoluble carbohydrates has distinct advantages for special types of reaction, especially exo-type carbohydrase; however, its application is limited due to structural constraints. This paper introduces two novel heterogeneous enzyme reaction systems for direct conversion of insoluble carbohydrates; one is an attrition coupled enzyme reaction system containing attrition-milling media for enhancing the enzyme reaction, and the other is a heterogeneous enzyme reaction system using extruded starch as an insoluble substrate. The direct conversion of typically insoluble carbohydrates, including cellulose, starch, and chitin with their corresponding carbohydrases, including cellulase, amylase, chitinase, and cyclodextrin glucanotransferase, was carried out using two proposed enzyme reaction systems. The conceptual features of the systems, their reaction characteristics and mechanism, and the industrial applications of the various carbohydrates are analyzed in this review.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제33권11호
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• pp.1403-1411
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• 2023

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is the most abundant component of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and directly creates environmental issues such as global warming and climate change. Carbon capture and storage have been proposed mainly to solve the problem of increasing CO₂ concentration in the atmosphere; however, more emphasis has recently been placed on its use. Among the many methods of using CO₂, one of the key environmentally friendly technologies involves biologically converting CO₂ into other organic substances such as biofuels, chemicals, and biomass via various metabolic pathways. Although an efficient biocatalyst for industrial applications has not yet been developed, biological CO₂ conversion is the needed direction. To this end, this review briefly summarizes seven known natural CO₂ fixation pathways according to carbon number and describes recent studies in which natural CO₂ assimilation systems have been applied to heterogeneous in vivo and in vitro systems. In addition, studies on the production of methanol through the reduction of CO₂ are introduced. The importance of redox cofactors, which are often overlooked in the CO₂ assimilation reaction by enzymes, is presented; methods for their recycling are proposed. Although more research is needed, biological CO₂ conversion will play an important role in reducing GHG emissions and producing useful substances in terms of resource cycling.