Building a bio-based industry in the Middle East through harnessing the potential of the Red Sea biodiversity

Abstract

The incentive for developing microbial cell factories for production of fuels and chemicals comes from the ability of microbes to deliver these valuable compounds at a reduced cost and with a smaller environmental impact compared to the analogous chemical synthesis. Another crucial advantage of microbes is their great biological diversity, which offers a much larger “catalog” of molecules than the one obtainable by chemical synthesis. Adaptation to different environments is one of the important drives behind microbial diversity. We argue that the Red Sea, which is a rather unique marine niche, represents a remarkable source of biodiversity that can be geared towards economical and sustainable bioproduction processes in the local area and can be competitive in the international bio-based economy. Recent bioprospecting studies, conducted by the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, have established important leads on the Red Sea biological potential, with newly isolated strains of Bacilli and Cyanobacteria. We argue that these two groups of local organisms are currently most promising in terms of developing cell factories, due to their ability to operate in saline conditions, thus reducing the cost of desalination and sterilization. The ability of Cyanobacteria to perform photosynthesis can be fully exploited in this particular environment with one of the highest levels of irradiation on the planet. We highlight the importance of new experimental and in silico methodologies needed to overcome the hurdles of developing efficient cell factories from the Red Sea isolates.

Production and Anticancer Activity of an L-Asparaginase from Bacillus licheniformis Isolated from the Red Sea, Saudi Arabia

“…Recently, ASNases from E. coli and Erwinia carotovora produced by submerged fermentation were approved for use in medical applications by the United States Food and Drug Administration 9,10 . The Red Sea of the Saudi Arabia has yet to be thoroughly investigated with respect to its harboring microbes with biopharmaceutical and biotechnological potential 11 . Marine microbe-derived ASNases may be more effective and have fewer side effects as therapeutic agents for acute lymphoblastic leukemia treatment than traditional sources of these enzymes 12 .…”

Morphological evolution of various fungal species in the presence and absence of aluminum oxide microparticles: Comparative and quantitative insights into microparticle‐enhanced cultivation (MPEC)

“…The development of cost‐effective cultivation strategies is thus an essential prerequisite for harnessing the enormous biochemical potential of fungal strains. Furthermore, maintaining the economic feasibility of bio‐based production is inevitably associated with the development of novel process‐related methods that allow for the continuous improvements in terms of titer, yield, and productivity (Nielsen et al., ).…”

In silico exploration of Red Sea Bacillus genomes for natural product biosynthetic gene clusters

“…An environment that should be explored for such resilient, productive Bacillus strains is the Red Sea that exhibits relatively high salinity (36–41 p.s.u), and temperature (24 °C in spring, and up to 35 °C in summer) [ 28 ]. It is expected that strains from this environment are able to produce a number of thermo-tolerant enzymes, as well as provide robust microbial cell factories that are able to survive frequent exposure to high salinity and high temperature, and produce sturdier enzymes that might be better suited for industrial applications [ 29 ].…”