PROMICON

Description

PROMICON seeks to learn from existing microbiomes in nature to use their knowledge to develop new and groundbreaking industrial applications. Two different strategies will be followed: i) top-down and ii) bottom-up approach.

By using a top-down approach, PROMICON will develop and optimise existing microbiomes from nature for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), exo-polysaccharides (EPS), phycobiliproteins (PPP) usable in the materials and biomaterials sectors, as well as pigments for the feed and food industry.

By using a bottom-up approach, new synthetic productive microbiomes will be generated through an iterative design-build-test-learn cycle using systems metabolic engineering. These microbial consortia inspired by natural microbiomes will be used for the biotechnological production of butanol and hydrogen for the chemical and fuel industry and functionalized bacterial polyester (antimicrobial PHACOS).

Objectives

The aim of PROMICON is to learn from nature how microbiomes function through latest and novel methods in order to steer their growth towards the production of biopolymers, energy carriers, drop-in feedstocks and antimicrobial molecules.

This main overarching aim will be pursued by four ambitious research objectives:

• Develop rapid high-resolution data analysis methodologies based on online single cell analysis and multi/hyper-spectral imaging analysis in combination with Meta-OMICS technologies and novel systems biology modelling of the consortia.
• Top-down engineering of natural microbiomes into stable and highly productive consortia for the production of biopolymers.
• Assemble and develop new synthetic consortia using systems metabolic engineering to create stable and highly productive microbiomes for energy carriers, drop-in feedstocks and antimicrobial molecules.
• Design, construct and operate new types of reactors to increase biomass concentration and productivity.

Impact

PROMICON will generate impact in the area of science, technology, EU business, and the society. The project contributes to social perception and acceptance of bio-based processes and microbiomes in particular and will directly secure and create jobs through the development of new large-scale applications.

PROMICON will provides useful scientific and technical knowledge and advances on bio-based solutions and improve the overall knowledge of the industrial microbiome with a view to responding to market needs. The new concepts developed in PROMICON will have a transformational character for the bio-economy sector.

Funded by: European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

Duration: June 2021 – May 2025