This book presents the latest research on the uses of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), introducing readers to these natural, biodegradable polyesters produced by microorganisms, their functions and applications. The individual chapters discuss the various potentials of these bioplastics, which offer an attractive alternative to non-biodegradable plastics. The book also describes the diverse medical and biomedical applications of PHAs, including their use as drug carriers, memory enhancers, and biocontrol agents, and examines their role in creating a more sustainable economy - which is the need of the hour.

Autorentext

Dr Vipin Chandra Kalia Ph.D. is currently a Professor (NRF) at the Department of Chemical Engineering, Konkuk University, Seoul, Korea. He is an Ex-Emeritus Scientist and Ex-Acting Director of CSIR- Institute of Genomics & Integrative Biology (IGIB), Delhi, India. His research has been published in Nature Biotechnology; Trends in Biotechnology; Biotechnology Advances; Annual Reviews in Microbiology; and Bioresource Technology. In addition he is the Editor-in-chief of the Indian Journal of Microbiology (2013 onwards), and is an editorial board member of various other journals. Dr Kalia has also published 12 books (SpringerNature). He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences in India, and the National Research Foundation, Korea.

Inhalt

Chapter 1. The Dawn of Novel Biotechnological Applications of Polyhydroxyalkanoates.- Chapter 2. Strategy for biosynthesis of polyhydroxyalkonates polymers/copolymers and their application in drug delivery.- Chapter 3. Applications of Polyhydroxyalkanoates and its metabolites as transporters for bioactive molecules.- Chapter 4. Polyhydroxyalkanoates applications in antimicrobial agents' delivery and wound healing.- Chapter 5. Polyhydroxyalkanoates applications in Drug Carriers.- Chapter 6. Applications of polyhydroxyalkanoate based nanovehicles.- Chapter 7. Memory enhancers.- Chapter 8. Novel Biocontrol Agents: Short Chain Fatty Acids And More Recently, Polyhydroxyalkanoates.- Chapter 9. Potential Therapeutic Applications of Polyhydroalkanoates and Their Composites as Anti-microbial Agents.- Chapter 10. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) Applications in Wound Treatment and as Precursors for Oral Drugs.- Chapter 11. Exploiting Polyhydroxyalkanoates for Tissue Engineering.- Chapter 12. CH4-based polyhydroxyalkanoate production: a step further towards a sustainable bioeconomy.- Chapter 13. Applications of PHA in Agriculture.- Chapter 14. Polyhydroxyalkanoates in Packaging.- Chapter 15. Approaches for Enhancing Extraction of bacterial polyhydroxyalkanoates for Industrial Applications.- Chapter 16. Nanofibers from polyhydroxyalkanoates and their applications in tissue engineering.