Developing a Clostridium molecular toolkit for bioconversion of food waste

Waste generation at forward bases creates significant challenges; its disposal presents an economic cost with no direct benefit and its accumulation or burning is a health hazard. The bioconversion of waste into useful compounds could save thousands annually for every soldier and tens of millions in capital expenditure. However, widespread adoption is impeded by low conversion efficiency. We propose developing a Clostridium molecular toolkit, composed of a Clostridium cell-free system and associated parts (functional enzymes and regulatory regions), that can be used to engineer Clostridium to conduct efficient food waste fermentation. Synvitrobio and its academic subcontractor have extensive experience building E. coli cell-free prototyping systems, and believes an opportunity exists to build Clostridium cell-free systems. At the end of Phase I, we will de-risk the feasibility of the toolkit, and identify higher-order compounds to develop. In Phase II, we will mature the Clostridium cell-free toolkit for commercial deployment, and demonstrate the use of engineered Clostridium strains to convert food waste to high-value chemicals.