Bacterial Methane Monooxygenase: from Molecular Evolution to Biotechnology

Methane is both a valuable source of energy and a potent greenhouse gas; its oxidation to methanol produces a useful and storable liquid fuel. In nature and in biotechnology, methane oxidation is undertaken by microorganisms called methanotrophs, which are slow growing. This research aimed to improve the biological conversion of methane and achieved this by retracing the evolution of the enzyme systems that enabled methane metabolism in these microbes. Then, this knowledge was successfully applied to the production of enzymes in a fast growing, industrially-relevant microbial host.