Engineering Bacteria to Convert Methane into Poly Unsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFA)

In this project, researchers from CHAIN and the University of Nottingham aim to develop process

technology that utilises methanotrophic bacteria to ferment methane into valuable nutritional

supplements (lipids) for animal feed. Methane is a low cost and sustainable feedstock that can be

produced from fracking or from a variety of renewable sources, including anaerobic digestion which is

prevalent in the UK and Europe. Using specialist synthetic biology tools, the partners plan to engineer

methanotrophs to ferment methane to produce a fish oil replacement in high yield.