Can Engineered Ocean Microbes Help Fight Climate Change?

What if microbes could be engineered to capture more carbon?

That would be great, wouldn't it? Or even produce sustainable materials using sunlight and sea water?

This idea might sound futuristic, but believe it or not, scientists are already working on it.

In laboratories all around the world, scientists are modifying ancient ocean microbes to produce fuels,

plastics, and industrial chemicals. If it works at scale, these tiny organisms could

help transform how we manufacture materials on Earth. This is the how to protect the ocean

podcast your weekday ocean news update. If you care about staying informed on the ocean every

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Synthetic biology is exploring how microbes could help address climate change.

By modifying photosynthetic microorganisms, scientists are trying to build living factories

powered by sunlight. Instead of using oil, coal, or natural gas to produce materials,

these systems would use sunlight, carbon dioxide, and sea water. Just imagine the possibilities.

But the question is, can engineered microbes help create a more sustainable future?

So here's the problem. Right now, industrial systems produce massive emissions.

Many of the materials we rely on today come from fossil fuels. These include plastics,

synthetic chemicals, industrial feedstocks, fuels, and lubricants. And to be honest,

we are in a system where everything is made from these materials. And I know it's kind of ironic

that people who are against the environmental movement will be the first to say,

oh, well, do you like your phone? That was made from hydrocarbons. Did you like your Starbucks

cup? That was made from plastics. Do you like that stuff? Because you use that stuff,

but you want to rile against it. And you want to stop it. Well, yeah, we want to stop it,

because we want to make a more sustainable future. We just can't because we live in this society

that is built from using these products, these foundations of all of our products or most of our

products. The chemical industry alone accounts for about six to eight percent of global greenhouse

gas emissions, largely because it depends on fossil carbon as both an energy source and as raw

materials. Plastic production is another major contributor. Global plastic production exceeds

400 million times per year. And most of it originates from petroleum-based feedstocks. 33% of

fossil fuels money is derived from selling plastic goods. That means every plastic bottle, synthetic

fiber, or industrial chemical starts with fossil carbon that was stored underground for millions

of years. The scientists are looking for biological alternatives that do not rely on fossil fuels.

One promising approach is bio-manufacturing using microbes. Here's the science of it.

Synthetic biology researchers are exploring ways to engineer microorganisms to produce useful

compounds. One of the most promising groups of organisms that work on this are cyanobacteria.

Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic microbes that naturally live in oceans, lakes, and freshwater

systems. And normally we think that they are bad, but in this case they can be good because they

use sunlight for energy, carbon dioxide as a carbon source, and water as an electron donor.

Through photosynthesis they convert CO2 into organic molecules. Scientists have learned how to

modify their genetic systems so that instead of producing only biomass they produce specific

industrial compounds. Researchers have already engineered cyanobacteria to produce ethanol and

biofuels, hydrogen gas, bioplastics, and chemical building blocks for pharmaceuticals and materials.

So for example, a landmark study engineered the cyanobacteria cyanocosistus to produce

ethanol directly from CO2 and sunlight. Imagine that. Most recently researchers engineered

cyanobacteria to produce isobutinol, a potential new generation biofuel. Other studies have modified

cyanobacteria to produce polyhydroxyl alkanotes. Or pHs is probably the better way for me to say it.

Which are biodegradable plastics. In simple terms, scientists are turning microbes into

solar-powered biochemical factories. Cyanobacteria are particularly attractive for biotechnology.

These organisms evolved over 2.5 billion years ago and played a major role in shaping the

Earth's atmosphere. They were responsible for the great oxygenation event. When oxygen began

accumulating in the atmosphere and allowed complex life to evolve. Because of their long

evolutionary history, cyanobacteria have several advantages for synthetic biology. They grow quickly.

They use sunlight as their primary energy source. They capture carbon dioxide directly through

photosynthesis. And their genetic systems are relatively simple, which makes them easier to modify

compared to many other organisms. Scientists can insert genes that redirect metabolic pathways

toward producing specific molecules. So for example, a metabolic pathway that normally produces

sugars can be redirected to produce ethanol or other chemicals. Instead of growing biomass,

the microbes become a living production platform. Here are some potential applications.

Research suggests engineered microbes could help with several major challenges. Carbon neutral

materials. Instead of making plastics from fossil fuels, microbes could produce bioplastics using

captured carbon dioxide. These plastics could be biodegradable and have a much smaller carbon

sustainable chemical manufacturing. Many industrial chemicals currently come from oil refineries.

Engineered microbes could produce the same molecules using sunlight and CO2.

Companies are already exploring microbial systems that produce acrylics, chemical solvents,

and industrial alcohols. Looking at carbon capture, photosynthetic microbes naturally

remove CO2 from the atmosphere. Engineering systems couldn't increase the carbon capture

efficiency. Some research groups are working on microbes that convert captured CO2

into stable compounds or fuels. Imagine having a system where we can accelerate the amount of

CO2 that's absorbed by these cyanobacteria. Just think about the uses of that and how that can help

us in the fight against climate change. We look at waste recycling. Scientists are also exploring

microbes that can break down waste products and convert them into useful chemicals. For example,

engineered microbial systems may eventually convert agricultural waste, industrial CO2 emissions,

and organic waste systems. All these can be converted into valuable materials. If these systems

scale successfully, they could help reduce reliance on fossil fuel-based manufacturing.

All these solutions are really great, but engineering living systems also raises important questions.

If engineered microbes are released into natural environments, scientists must consider the

potential ecological impacts. Some of the concerns include whether modified organisms could spread

beyond controlled systems, whether they could outcompete natural microbes, whether genetic

changes could transfer to wild populations. Because of these risks, most research today

occurs in contained laboratory and industrial environments. Many process systems involve closed

bioreactors, where microbes can grow and control tanks instead of open ocean environments.

There is a growing discussion about biosafety frameworks and genetic containment systems.

For example, scientists are developing engineered microbes that cannot survive outside

controlled conditions. Responsible research requires careful oversight. Biotechnology has

an enormous potential, but it must be delivered responsibly. If you enjoy this type of breakdown

of microbes and other ocean systems from this podcast, hit that follow button so you don't miss

tomorrow's episode. Here are my final thoughts on this episode. Microbes have shaped the Earth's

atmosphere, ecosystems, and climates for billions of years. They help oxygenate the planet.

They regulate carbon cycles, and they power many of the ocean's most important ecosystems.

Now scientists are exploring whether these ancient organisms can help solve some modern

challenges humanity created. By bioengineering photosynthetic microbes, researchers hope to build

a new generation of sustainable manufacturing systems powered by sunlight.

Now tomorrow's episode features a scientist working at the center of this field,

a synthetic biologist engineering cyanobacteria to rethink how we produce materials and capture

carbon. Don't miss that episode, hit that follow button so you get it updated in your favorite

podcast app. And of course, if you think somebody is going to benefit from this episode, share it

with them, send it to them. That's how we grow in this podcast. We also grow by hitting that follow

button, and then we grow to the top of the charts where more people can be exposed to this episode

and get all this information about the ocean. I want to thank you so much for joining me on today's

episode of the How to Protect the Ocean podcast. And I would love to hear your feedback by going

to speakupforblue.com forward slash feedback. Speakupforblue.com forward slash feedback. I want to

thank you so much. I'm your host Angelo and have a great day. We'll talk to you next time at Happy

Conservation.