Cyanobacteria: Applications in Biotechnology

Abstract

Cyanobacteria, the first oxygen-evolving group of photosynthetic Gram-negative prokaryotes, are unique among microbial world and grow in diverse habitats. Cyanobacteria synthesize a vast array of novel secondary metabolites including biologically active compounds with antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, and anticancer activities. Certain other important metabolites reported from cyanobacteria, include enzymes, toxins, UV-absorbing pigments, and certain fluorescent dyes. Furthermore, biofuel production by cyanobacteria constitutes one of the most promising areas for biotechnological applications. In addition, production of alcohols and isoprenoids, biopolymers, recombinant proteins, and single-cell protein employing modern tools of genetic engineering seems attractive. In the field of agriculture, potent N2-fixing cyanobacteria could be exploited as bio-factory to produce biofertilizer for enriching the fertility of soil. There is a need to develop suitable genome engineering tools in cyanobacteria to produce fuels, value-added compounds, and feedstocks in a sustainable way. In this chapter, an overview of the potential applications of cyanobacteria in various sectors of biotechnology is presented. © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.