Abstract
Ralstonia eutropha (a.k.a., Cupriavidus necator) is at the forefront of the
research movement towards sustainable bioproductions. There are two principal
reasons for the popularity of R. eutropha in this arena: 1) the organism has a versatile
metabolism and can utilize a wide variety of carbon sources from sugars and lipids to
carbon dioxide and aromatic compounds for growth and fermentative bioproductions,
2) it can store a large amount of carbon as intracellular polymer. R. eutropha is known
as the model system for polymer (polyhydroxyalkanoate) biosynthesis and
mobilization. Many valuable works have been published on this specific topic. In the
recent years, however, R. eutropha is being used as a host organism for heterologous
bioconversions, such as biofuel synthesis. Again, researchers are exploiting the
metabolic versatility of the organism to create novel products and processes. This
chapter chronicles the key discoveries of R. eutropha biology and presents the
biomanufacturing context that inspired many research groups to tailor the organism as a
novel biocatalyst.