Selective bio-oxidation of propane to acetone using methane-oxidizing Methylomonas sp DH-1

Propane is the major component of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). Nowadays, the use of LPG is decreasing, and thus utilization of propane as a chemical feedstock is in need of development. An efficient biological conversion of propane to acetone using a methanotrophic whole cell as the biocatalyst was proposed and investigated. A bio-oxidation pathway of propane to acetone in Methylomonas sp. DH-1 was analyzed by gene expression profiling via RNA sequencing. Propane was oxidized to 2-propanol by particulate methane monooxygenase and subsequently to acetone by methanol dehydrogenases. Methylomonas sp. DH-1 was deficient in acetone-converting enzymes and thus accumulated acetone in the absence of any enzyme inhibition. The maximum accumulation, average productivity and specific productivity of acetone were 16.62 mM, 0.678 mM/h and 0.141 mmol/g cell/h, respectively, under the optimized conditions. Our study demonstrates a novel method for the bioconversion of propane to acetone using methanotrophs under mild reaction condition.