Cyanobacterial Polyhydroxyalkanoates: A Sustainable Alternative in Circular Economy

• Main Authors: Diana Gomes Gradíssimo, Luciana Pereira Xavier, Agenor Valadares Santos
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-09-01
• Series: Molecules
• Subjects: biopolymer; biorefinery; cyanobacteria; circular economy; polyhydroxyalkanoate; waste
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/25/18/4331

Conventional petrochemical plastics have become a serious environmental problem. Its unbridled use, especially in non-durable goods, has generated an accumulation of waste that is difficult to measure, threatening aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The replacement of these plastics with cleaner alternatives, such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), can only be achieved by cost reductions in the production of microbial bioplastics, in order to compete with the very low costs of fossil fuel plastics. The biggest costs are carbon sources and nutrients, which can be appeased with the use of photosynthetic organisms, such as cyanobacteria, that have a minimum requirement for nutrients, and also using agro-industrial waste, such as the livestock industry, which in turn benefits from the by-products of PHA biotechnological production, for example pigments and nutrients. Circular economy can help solve the current problems in the search for a sustainable production of bioplastic: reducing production costs, reusing waste, mitigating CO₂, promoting bioremediation and making better use of cyanobacteria metabolites in different industries.