Cell-Free Synthesis of Carbohydrates from Sustainable C1 Sources

The POWER CO₂ Days! | September 7–9, 2026 | Lyon, France

Day 1: Next frontier C3+

We are thrilled to announce an upcoming presentation by Sébastien Bontemps on the incredible challenge of building complex molecules directly from carbon emissions!

Photosynthesis is a major natural process that enables living organisms to use CO₂ as both an energy carrier and a carbon source. In nature, CO₂ is efficiently transformed into glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate, a C3 carbohydrate. For chemists, achieving this artificially is a massive synthetic challenge, as it implies the unprecedented formation of polyol chains and asymmetric carbon atoms from CO₂ as the only source of carbon.

During his presentation, Sébastien will report on a step forward: the selective formation of formaldehyde from sustainable C1 sources, such as CO₂ and CO. This breakthrough represents a key step for the synthesis of Cn products and, most notably, the de novo cell-free synthesis of carbohydrates.

We look forward to an inspiring session on hybrid catalysis and cascade reactions!

Keywords:

#C1toCn #Carbohydrates #Formaldehyde #HybridCatalysis #CascadeReaction #CO2Valorization #Chemistry

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