
Lars M. BlankRWTH Aachen University · iAMB - Institute of Applied Microbiology (Bio IV)
Lars M. Blank
Prof. Dr.-Ing.
About
597
Publications
147,052
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Introduction
Head of the chair Applied Microbiology at the iAMB - Institute of Applied Microbiology
Lars M. Blank focuses in his research on fundamental and applied aspects of microbial metabolism. Of specific interest is the interaction between the metabolic network and the introduced genetic and environmental perturbations. The research on in silico/in vivo metabolic network operation is aimed at a deeper understanding of cell function, with the ultimate goal of rational cell engineering.
Additional affiliations
July 2011 - present
November 2004 - June 2011
June 2002 - October 2004
Education
October 1992 - March 1997
October 1990 - December 1997
Publications
Publications (597)
The envisaged circular economy requires absolute carbon efficiency and in the long run abstinence from fossil feedstocks, and integration of industrial production with end-of-life waste management. Non-conventional feedstocks arising from industrial production and societal consumption such as CO2 and plastic waste may soon enable manufacture of mul...
Inorganic polyphosphate (polyP) is the polymer of phosphate. Water‐soluble polyPs with average chain lengths of 2–40 P‐subunits are widely used as food additives and are currently synthesized chemically. An environmentally friendly highly scalable process to biosynthesize water‐soluble food‐grade polyP in powder form (termed bio‐polyP) is presented...
High-titer biosurfactant production in aerated fermenters using hydrophilic substrates is often hampered by excessive foaming. Ethanol has been shown to efficiently destabilize foam of rhamnolipids, a popular group of biosurfactants. To exploit this feature, we used ethanol as carbon source and defoamer, without introducing novel challenges for rha...
Considerable research achievements were made to address the plastic crisis using biotechnology, but this is still limited to polyesters. This Comment aims to clarify important aspects related to myths and realities about plastic biodegradation and suggests distinct strategies for a bio-based circular plastic economy in the future.
The plastic crisis requires drastic measures, especially for the plastics’ end-of-life. Mixed plastic fractions are currently difficult to recycle, but microbial metabolism might open new pathways. With new technologies for degradation of plastics to oligo- and monomers, these carbon sources can be used in biotechnology for the upcycling of plastic...
Waterlogging is a significant stressor for crops, particularly in lowland regions where soil conditions exacerbate the problem. Waterlogged roots experience hypoxia, disrupting oxidative phosphorylation and triggering metabolic reorganization to sustain energy production. Here, we investigated the metabolic aspects that differentiate two soybean si...
Background
Allergic contact dermatitis and chronic actinic dermatitis are frequently observed among florists and gardeners due to exposure to potentially allergenic plants and plant products. Tulipalin A, an alpha-methylene-gamma-butyrolactone, is a common allergen synthesized by Tulipa genera, but its natural occurrence across Plantae remains unex...
Background
This article provides an overview of the iMulch joint project, which analysed the use of polyethylene (PE) and biodegradable mulch films made of a polylactide (PLA) and polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT) on agricultural land as a source of microplastic. The development of a detection methodology using Raman spectroscopy and thermo...
Plant‐derived triterpenoids are in high demand due to their valuable applications in cosmetic, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical industries. To meet this demand, microbial production of triterpenoids is being developed for large‐scale production. However, a prominent limitation of microbial synthesis is the intracellular accumulation, requiring cel...
Combining biotechnology and chemistry strategies seems to be one of the main drivers to develop innovative and sustainable macromolecular architectures for the next decades, starting from renewable carbon sources, such as biomass and plastic wastes. Herein, microbially produced biobased precursors, namely esterified 3-(3-hydrox-yalkanoyloxy)alkanoa...
Background
Biofilm formation on implant-abutment surfaces can cause inflammatory reactions. Ethical concerns often limit intraoral testing, necessitating preliminary in vitro or animal studies. Here, we propose an in vitro model using human saliva and hypothesize that this model has the potential to closely mimic the dynamics of biofilm formation o...
The chemical industry can now seize the opportunity to improve the sustainability of its processes by replacing fossil carbon sources with renewable alternatives such as CO2, biomass, and plastics, thereby thinking ahead and having a look into the future. For their conversion to intermediate and final products, different types of catalysts—microbia...
Background
Komagataella phaffii (K. phaffii), formerly known as Pichia pastoris, is a widely utilized yeast for recombinant protein production. However, due to the formation of overflow metabolites, carbon yields may be reduced and product recovery becomes challenging. This study investigates the impact of oxygen availability, different glucose con...
Genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) and other constraint-based models (CBMs) play a pivotal role in understanding biological phenotypes and advancing research in areas like metabolic engineering, human disease modelling, drug discovery, and personalized medicine. Despite their growing application, a significant challenge remains in ensuring the re...
Polyphosphate (polyP) is an intriguing molecule that is found in almost any organism, covering a multitude of cellular functions. In industry, polyP is used due to its unique physiochemical properties, including pH buffering, water binding, and bacteriostatic activities. Despite the importance of polyP, its analytics is still challenging, with the...
Squalene is a natural triterpenoid and a biosynthetic precursor of steroids and hopanoids in microorganisms, plants, humans, and other animals. Squalene has exceptional properties, such as its antioxidant activity, a high penetrability of the skin, and the ability to trigger the immune system, promoting its application in the cosmetic, sustenance,...
The utility of Acinetobacter baylyi ADP1 (ADP1) for lignin valorization has yet to be sufficiently investigated compared to other organisms such as Pseudomonas , Rhodococcus, etc. In this study, a two-step Adaptive Laboratory Evolution (ALE) process was used to evolve a unique ADP1 strain ( A. baylyi SAG_185). Initially, several ADP1 strains were e...
Objectives
The ascomycotic yeast-like fungus Aureobasidium exhibits the natural ability to synthesize several secondary metabolites, like polymalic acid, pullulan, or polyol lipids, with potential biotechnological applications. Combined with its polyextremotolerance, these properties make Aureobasidium a promising production host candidate. Hence,...
Genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) can facilitate metabolism-focused multi-omics integrative analysis. Since Yeast8, the yeast-GEM of Saccharomyces cerevisiae , published in 2019, has been continuously updated by the community. This has increased the quality and scope of the model, culminating now in Yeast9. To evaluate its predictive performance...
We here explore the potential of the fungal genus Aureobasidium as a prototype for a microbial chassis for industrial biotechnology in the context of a developing circular bioeconomy. The study emphasizes the physiological advantages of Aureobasidium, including its polyextremotolerance, broad substrate spectrum, and diverse product range, making it...
Pseudomonas putida has become an increasingly important chassis for producing valuable bioproducts. This development is not least due to the ever‐improving genetic toolbox, including gene and genome editing techniques. Here, we present a novel, one‐plasmid design of a critical genetic tool, the pEMG/pSW system, guaranteeing one engineering cycle to...
Genomic integration is commonly used to engineer stable production hosts. However, so far for many microbial workhorses only very limited numbers of integration sites were characterized, thereby restraining advanced strain engineering that requires multiple insertions. Here, we report on the identification of novel genomic integration sites, so-cal...
Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) is a widely used microbial strain development and optimization method. ALE experiments, to select for faster‐growing strains, are commonly performed as serial batch cultivations in shake flasks, serum bottles, or microtiter plates or as continuous cultivations in bioreactors on a laboratory scale. To combine the...
Constraint‐based optimization of microbial strains and model‐based bioprocess design have been used extensively to enhance yields in biotechnological processes. However, strain and process optimization are usually carried out in sequential steps, causing underperformance of the biotechnological process when scaling up to industrial fermentation con...
Bacteria are a treasure trove of metabolic reactions, but most industrial biotechnology applications rely on a limited set of established host organisms. In contrast, adopting non-model bacteria for the production of various chemicals of interest is often hampered by their limited genetic amenability coupled with their low transformation efficiency...
Executive summary
Microbes are all pervasive in their distribution and influence on the functioning and well‐being of humans, life in general and the planet. Microbially‐based technologies contribute hugely to the supply of important goods and services we depend upon, such as the provision of food, medicines and clean water. They also offer mechani...
Biosurfactants are much-discussed alternatives to petro- and oleochemical surfactants. Alcanivorax borkumensis, a marine, Gram-negative γ-proteobacterium, produces a glycine-glucolipid biosurfactant from hydrocarbons, pyruvate, and acetate as carbon sources. Sustainable acetate production from lignocellulose or syngas adds to its relevance for the...
Background
Komagataella phaffii (Pichia pastoris) has emerged as a common and robust biotechnological platform organism, to produce recombinant proteins and other bioproducts of commercial interest. Key advantage of K. phaffii is the secretion of recombinant proteins, coupled with a low host protein secretion. This facilitates downstream processing...
The plasic crisis is ominipresent, from littering macroplastic to reports that document plastic in every niche of this planet, including the human body. In order to achieve higher recycling quotas, especially of mixed plastic waste, pyrolysis seems to be a viable option. However, depending on the process parameters, plastic pyrolysis oil waste is e...
To broaden the substrate scope of microbial cell factories towards renewable substrates, rational genetic interventions are often combined with adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE). However, comprehensive studies enabling a holistic understanding of adaptation processes primed by rational metabolic engineering remain scarce. The industrial workhorse...
Itaconic acid is a platform chemical with a range of applications in polymer synthesis and is also discussed for biofuel production. While produced in industry from glucose or sucrose, co‐feeding of glucose and acetate was recently discussed to increase itaconic acid production by the smut fungus Ustilago maydis. In this study, we investigate the o...
Plastic usage by microbes as a carbon source is a promising strategy to increase the recycling quota. 1,4‐butanediol (BDO) is a common monomer derived from polyesters and polyurethanes. In this study, Ustilago trichophora was found to be an efficient cell‐factory to valorize BDO. To investigate product formation by U. trichophora, we refined the tr...
Polyol lipids (a.k.a. liamocins) produced by the polyextremotolerant, yeast-like fungus Aureobasidium pullulans are amphiphilic molecules with high potential to serve as biosurfactants. So far, cultivations of A. pullulans have been performed in media with complex components, which complicates further process optimization due to their undefined com...
Background
To contribute to the discovery of new microbial strains with metabolic and physiological robustness and develop them into successful chasses, Paracoccus pantotrophus DSM 2944, a Gram-negative bacterium from the phylum Alphaproteobacteria and the family Rhodobacteraceae, was chosen. The strain possesses an innate ability to tolerate high...
Pseudomonas putida has become an increasingly important chassis for the production of valuable bioproducts. This development is not at least due to the ever-improving genetic toolbox, including gene and genome editing techniques. Here, we present a novel, one plasmid design of a key genetic tool, the pEMG/pSW system, guaranteeing one engineering cy...
Foam formation is a massive challenge in submerged aerated bioprocesses, e.g., in beer fermentation. While the use of antifoam may easily overcome foaming at laboratory scale, it is often an unattractive solution since the challenge remains in future upscaling, as reduced mass transfer and extra steps in product purification and analytics result in...
Background
One carbon (C1) molecules such as methanol have the potential to become sustainable feedstocks for biotechnological processes, as they can be derived from CO2 and green hydrogen, without the need for arable land. Therefore, we investigated the suitability of the methylotrophic yeast Ogataea polymorpha as a potential production organism f...
Biotechnologically produced methyl ketones can be a sustainable, safe, and less toxic biofuel candidate with efficient and clean combustion properties and compatibility with the fuel infrastructure.
Chemically defined mineral media are widely used in bioprocesses, as these show less batch to batch variation compared with complex media. Nonetheless, the recommended media formulations often lead to the formation of precipitants at elevated pH values. These precipitates are insoluble and reduce the availability of macronutrients to the cells, whi...
Genome-scale metabolic models (GEMs) can facilitate metabolism-focused multi-omics integrative analysis. Since Yeast8, the yeast-GEM of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, published in 2019, has been continuously updated by the community. This have increased the quality and scope of this model, culminating now in Yeast9. To evaluate its predictive performanc...
Glycine-glucolipid, a glycolipid, is natively synthesized by the marine bacterium Alcanivorax borkumensis SK2. A. borkumensis is a Gram-negative, non-motile, aerobic, halophilic, rod-shaped γ-proteobacterium, classified as an obligate hydrocarbonoclastic bacterium. Naturally, this bacterium exists in low cell numbers in unpolluted marine environmen...
Rationale: Liver cirrhosis is known to affect drug pharmacokinetics, but the functional assessment of the underlying pathophysiological alterations in drug metabolism is difficult.
Methods: Cirrhosis in mice was induced by repeated treatment with carbon tetrachloride for 12 months. A cocktail of six drugs was administered, and parent compounds as w...
To reduce carbon dioxide emissions, carbon-neutral fuels have recently gained renewed attention. Here we show the development and evaluation of process routes for the production of such a fuel, the cyclic acetal 4,5-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolane, from glucose via 2,3-butanediol. The selected process routes are based on the sequential use of microbes, enzy...
Ginsenosides are the primary active metabolites of ginseng and have been 44 used in traditional herbal medicine in Asia for more than 4,000 years. Protopanaxadiol 45 (PPD) is the precursor of dammarane-type ginsenosides, exhibiting different 46 pharmacological activities. However, extraction of PPD from plant material is 47 cumbersome because of it...
Type I polyketide synthases (T1PKSs) hold enormous potential as a rational production platform for the biosynthesis of specialty chemicals. However, despite great progress in this field, the heterologous expression of PKSs remains a major challenge. One of the first measures to improve heterologous gene expression can be codon optimization. Althoug...
Itaconic acid is a platform chemical with a range of applications in polymer synthesis and is also discussed for biofuel production. While produced in industry from glucose or sucrose, co-feeding of glucose and acetate was recently discussed to increase itaconic acid production by the smut fungus Ustilago maydis.
In this study, we investigate the o...
A novel biosurfactant was discovered to be synthesized by the marine bacterium Alcanivorax borkumensis in 1992. This bacterium is abundant in marine environments affected by oil spills, where it helps to degrade alkanes and, under such conditions, produces a glycine-glucolipid biosurfactant. The biosurfactant enhances the bacterium’s attachment to...
The biotechnological production of methyl ketones is a sustainable alternative to fossil-derived chemical production. To date, the best host for microbial production of methyl ketones is a genetically engineered Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120 ∆6 pProd strain, achieving yields of 101 mgg−1 on glucose in batch cultivations. For competitiveness with t...