Date

2010

Author

Pekgöz, Gülşah

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Rhodobacter capsulatus is a photosynthetic, purple non-sulfur (PNS) bacterium that produces biohydrogen via photofermentation. Nitrogenase enzyme is responsible for hydrogen production; during fixation of molecular nitrogen into ammonium, hydrogen is produced. Since this process is an energetically expensive process for the cell, hydrogen production is strictly controlled at different levels. When ammonium is present in the environment, hydrogen production completely ceases. The key proteins in the regulation of nitrogenase by ammonium are two PII proteins; GlnB and GlnK. ‘Hyvolution’, 6th framework EU project, aims to achieve maximum hydrogen production by combining two hydrogen production processes; dark fermentation and photofermentation. In the first stage of the overall process, biomass is used for hydrogen production in dark fermentation process. Then, the effluent of dark fermentation is further utilized by photosynthetic bacteria to produce more hydrogen. However, the effluent of dark fermentation contains high amount of ammonium, which inhibits photofermentative hydrogen production. In order to achieve maximum hydrogen production, ammonium regulation of nitrogenase enzyme in R.capsulatus has to be released. For this purpose, all PII signal transduction proteins of R.capsulatus (GlnB and GlnK) were targeted to be inactivated by site-directed mutagenesis. The internal parts of glnB and glnK genes were deleted individually without using antibiotic cassette insertion. The successful glnB mutant was obtained at the end of mutagenesis studies. In the case of glnK mutation, the suicide vector was constructed and delivered into the cells. However, glnK mutant could not be obtained. The effect of ammonium on glnB mutant R.capsulatus was investigated and compared with wild type. Biomass of the bacterial cultures, pH of the medium and amount of produced hydrogen were periodically determined. Moreover, the concentrations of acetic, lactic, formic and propionic acids in the medium were periodically measured. Both wild type and glnB mutant grew on acetate and effectively utilized acetate. Ammonium negatively affected hydrogen production of glnB mutant and wild type. The ammonium inhibition of hydrogen production did not release in glnB mutant due to the presence of active GlnK protein in the cell; hence, inactivation of one of PII proteins was not enough to disrupt ammonium regulation of the cell. Moreover, kinetic analysis of bacterial growth and hydrogen production were done. Growth data fitted to the Logistic Model and hydrogen production data fitted to the Modified Gompertz Model.

Subject Keywords

Genetics.

URI

http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12612677/index.pdf
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/20085

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Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Thesis