Methods of making polyhydroxyalkanoates comprising 4-hydroxybutyrate monomer units

A process for producing polyhydroxyalkanoate comprising 4-hydroxybutyrate monomer units, the method comprising:

• providing a host cell able to synthesize poly-.beta.-hydroxyalkanoate via a polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway, the host cell containing at least one recombinant nucleotide sequence that encodes a succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway that metabolizes succinic semialdehyde via a 4-hydroxybutyryl-CoA intermediate;
• and,
• cultivating the host cell under suitable conditions to obtain expression of the poly-.beta.-hydroxyalkanoate pathway and the succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway in the host cell, to produce the polyhydroxalkanoate.

A process for producing a polyhydroxyalkanoate comprising 4-hydroxybutyrate monomer units, the method comprising:

• providing a host cell that metabolizes succinic semialdehyde via a succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway that uses a 4-hydroxybutyryl-CoA intermediate, the host cell containing at least one recombinant nucleotide sequence that encodes a polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway;
• cultivating the host cell under suitable conditions to obtain expression of the succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway and the polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway in the host cell, to produce the polyhydroxyalkanoate.

A host cell containing at least one recombinant nucleotide sequence that encodes a polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway, and at least one recombinant nucleotide sequence that encodes a succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway that metabolizes succinic semialdehyde via a 4-hydroxybutyryl-CoA intermediate.

A vector construct that expresses at least one sequence recombinant nucleotide that encodes a polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthetic pathway, and at least one sequence recombinant nucleotide that encodes a succinic semialdehyde metabolic pathway.