Biological Polyesters

FIGU RE 15.3 Three-dimensional representation of ribonuclease A. The valine (V) and leucine (L) ends are shown together with disulfide linkages labeled A-F, B-G, C-H, and D-E. Both sheet and helical forms are apparent. 

FIGURE 15.4 The polyester chain of DNA consists of phosphate and sugar groups. Each sugar, in turn, is associated with one of the four amines shown on the right. The entire double helix (not shown) is stabilized by hydrogen bonds between amines (base pairs). (Data from Sryer, L., Biochemistry, chap. 4,4th edn.. Freeman, New York, 1995 Nature, 421,396, 2003.) 

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Acyltransferases are, for instance, able to synthesize biological polyesters with properties comparable or sometimes even exceeding polymers based on petrochemical-derived monomers. Acyltransferases are also frequently used to modify macromolecules in food and non-food applications. 

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are biological polyesters that are produced by a wide variety of bacteria as osmotically inert carbon- and energy-storage compounds that accumulate in the form of granules (see Fig. 1). 

Sudesh K, Abe H, Doi Y (2000) Synthesis, stracture and properties of polyhydroxyalkanoates biological polyesters. Prog Polym Sd 25 1503-1555 Sudesh K, Bhubalan K, Chuah J-A, Kek Y-K, Kamilah H, Sridewi N, Lee Y-F (2011) Synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoate from pahn oil and some new applications. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 89 1373-1386... 

Peoples, O., Snell, K. Progress on plant based PHA production systems. In International symposium on biological polyesters, minneapolis, Minnesota, US (2006)... 

Sudesh, K., Abe, H., Doi, Y. (2000). Synthesis, Structure and Properties of Poly-hy-Droxyalkanoates Biological Polyesters. Progress in Polymer Science (Oxford), 25(10), 1503-1555. 

Anderson DJ, Gnanasambandam A, WiUiams E, O Shea MG, Nielsen LK, Brumbley SM (2008) Production of polyhydroxyalkanoate copolymers in sugarcane. Paper presented at the international symposium on biological polyesters conference 2008, Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland, 23-26 Nov 2008... 

Patel M. Life cycle assessment of synthetic and biological polyesters. International Symposium on Biological Polyesters, 22-26 September, Munster, Germany. 

Sudesh K, Abe H, Doi Y. Synthesis, structure and properties of polyhydroxyalkanoates biological polyesters. Prog Pol5un Sci 2000 25 1503-1555. 

Sudesh, K., H. Abe, Y. Doi. 2000. Synthesis, structure, and properties of polyhydroxy-alkanoates Biological polyesters. Prog. Polym. Sci. 25 1503-1504. 

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