Production of P(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyhexanoate-co-3-hydroxyoctanoate) terpolymers using a chimeric PHA synthase in recombinant Ralstonia eutropha and Pseudomonas putida.

Recombinant strains of Ralstonia eutropha and Pseudomonas putida harboring a chimeric polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) synthase, which consisted of PHA synthases of Aeromonas caviae and R. eutropha, produced 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB)-based PHA copolymers comprised of 3-hydroxyhexanoate and 3-hydroxyoctanoate units from dodecanoate (87-97 mol % 3HB), indicating that the chimeric PHA synthase possesses desirable substrate specificity leading to the production of 3HB-rich copolymers.