초록
<P>This work examines the potential of the predatory bacterium <I>Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus</I> HD100, an obligate predator of other Gram-negative bacteria, as an external cell-lytic agent for recovering valuable intracellular bio-products produced by prey cultures. The bio-product targets to be recovered were polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) produced naturally by <I>Pseudomonas putida</I> and <I>Cupriavidus necator</I>, or by recombinant <I>Escherichia coli</I> strains. <I>B. bacteriovorus</I> with a mutated PHA depolymerase gene to prevent the unwanted breakdown of the bio-product allowed the recovery of up to 80% of that accumulated by the prey bacteria, even at high biomass concentrations. This innovative downstream process highlights how <I>B. bacteriovorus</I> can be used as a novel, biological lytic agent for the inexpensive, industrial scale recovery of intracellular products from different Gram-negative prey cultures.</P>