# Recent Advances in Understanding Bio-Compounds from Haloarchaea

**Authors:** Chi Young Hwang, Myung-Ji Seo

PMC · DOI: 10.4014/jmb.2601.01034 · 2026-02-24

## TL;DR

This review explores how haloarchaea, salt-loving microbes, can be used to produce valuable bio-compounds under extreme conditions.

## Contribution

The paper highlights recent strategies and industrial potential of haloarchaea for biosynthesis of bioactive compounds.

## Key findings

- Haloarchaea can produce industrially relevant enzymes and biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoates.
- The functional carotenoid bacterioruberin is a key bio-compound with potential applications.
- Advances in genome sequencing and genetic tools have enhanced haloarchaea's use in biomanufacturing.

## Abstract

Haloarchaea are extreme halophilic microorganisms that thrive in hypersaline environments. They possess unique physiological, metabolic, and molecular adaptations that enable robust biomanufacturing under harsh conditions. Growing taxonomic diversity, advances in genome sequencing, and the development of genetic and process engineering tools have significantly expanded interest in haloarchaea as non-conventional microbial cell factories. This review summarizes recent advances in the biosynthesis of high-value bio-compounds and their properties by haloarchaea. Particular emphasis is placed on industrially relevant enzymes, biodegradable polyhydroxyalkanoates, and the functional carotenoid bacterioruberin. Our investigation provides comprehensive information on the strategies, mass production, properties, and applications for the production of these bio-compounds from halophilic archaea. This review suggests the potential of haloarchaea in the industry and biotechnology as cellular factories to produce diverse bioactive compounds.

## Full-text entities

- **Genes:** NOS2 (nitric oxide synthase 2) [NCBI Gene 4843] {aka HEP-NOS, INOS, NOS, NOS2A}, CASP3 (caspase 3) [NCBI Gene 836] {aka CPP32, CPP32B, SCA-1}, CXCL8 (C-X-C motif chemokine ligand 8) [NCBI Gene 3576] {aka GCP-1, GCP1, IL8, LECT, LUCT, LYNAP}, CS (citrate synthase) [NCBI Gene 1431], COX2 (cytochrome c oxidase subunit II) [NCBI Gene 4513] {aka COII, MTCO2}, MSR1 (macrophage scavenger receptor 1) [NCBI Gene 4481] {aka CD204, SCARA1, SR-A, SR-AI, SR-AII, SR-AIII}, PTGS2 (prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2) [NCBI Gene 5743] {aka COX-2, COX2, GRIPGHS, PGG/HS, PGHS-2, PHS-2}, BAX (BCL2 associated X, apoptosis regulator) [NCBI Gene 581] {aka BCL2L4}, LBR (lamin B receptor) [NCBI Gene 3930] {aka C14SR, DHCR14B, LMN2R, PHA, PHASK, TDRD18}, TNF (tumor necrosis factor) [NCBI Gene 7124] {aka DIF, IMD127, TNF-alpha, TNFA, TNFSF2, TNLG1F}, HMOX1 (heme oxygenase 1) [NCBI Gene 3162] {aka HMOX1D, HO-1, HSP32, bK286B10}, MYH14 (myosin heavy chain 14) [NCBI Gene 79784] {aka DFNA4, DFNA4A, FP17425, MHC16, MYH17, NMHC II-C}, NFE2L2 (NFE2 like bZIP transcription factor 2) [NCBI Gene 4780] {aka IMDDHH, NRF2, Nrf-2}, KEAP1 (kelch like ECH associated protein 1) [NCBI Gene 9817] {aka INrf2, KLHL19}, IL6 (interleukin 6) [NCBI Gene 3569] {aka BSF-2, BSF2, CDF, HGF, HSF, IFN-beta-2}, CASP8 (caspase 8) [NCBI Gene 841] {aka ALPS2B, CAP4, Casp-8, FLICE, MACH, MCH5}
- **Diseases:** hemolysis (MESH:D006461), weight gain (MESH:D015430), tumor (MESH:D009369), lung carcinoma (MESH:D008175), inflammation (MESH:D007249), myeloid leukemia (MESH:D007951), EPS (MESH:D001480), breast cancer (MESH:D001943), colitis (MESH:D003092), atherogenic (MESH:D050197)
- **Chemicals:** fish oil (MESH:D005395), cholesterol (MESH:D002784), Carotenoid (MESH:D002338), thiobarbituric acid (MESH:C029684), PHB (MESH:C000720856), acetyl-CoA (MESH:D000105), N (MESH:D009584), polysaccharides (MESH:D011134), C (MESH:D002244), polymers (MESH:D011108), triglycerides (MESH:D014280), methanol (MESH:D000432), NaCl (MESH:D012965), (3HB) (MESH:D020155), fat (MESH:D005223), gamma-valerolactone (MESH:C037556), oxygen (MESH:D010100), sugar (MESH:D000073893), salt (MESH:D012492), HS (MESH:D006859), KCl (MESH:D011189), sodium acetate (MESH:D019346), PHBV (MESH:C052620), glucose (MESH:D005947), gamma-butyrolactone (MESH:D015107), PHAs (MESH:D054813), BR (MESH:C002951), 3-hydroxyvalerate (MESH:C013056), ATP (MESH:D000255), maltooligosaccharides (MESH:C021705), LPS (MESH:D008070), lipid (MESH:D008055), sucrose (MESH:D013395), vitamin D3 (MESH:D002762), magnesium sulfate (MESH:D008278), aspartate (MESH:D001224), Dex (MESH:D003907), peroxide (MESH:D010545), KNO3 (MESH:C023844), fatty acid (MESH:D005227), saccharides (MESH:D002241), TCA (MESH:D014238), starch (MESH:D013213), S (MESH:D013455), CEJ34-14 (-), cisplatin (MESH:D002945), H2O2 (MESH:D006861), glycerol (MESH:D005990), Na+ (MESH:D012964)
- **Species:** Halogranum rubrum (species) [taxon 553466], Haloarcula sp. (species) [taxon 44098], Ulva sp. (species) [taxon 2812607], Brassica oleracea (wild cabbage, species) [taxon 3712], Halorubrum ezzemoulense (species) [taxon 337243], Halobacterium salinarum (species) [taxon 2242], Haloterrigena turkmenica (species) [taxon 62320], Halorhabdus utahensis (species) [taxon 146826], Mus musculus (house mouse, species) [taxon 10090], Caenorhabditis elegans (species) [taxon 6239], Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast, species) [taxon 4932], Methanobacteriota (euryarchaeotes, phylum) [taxon 28890], Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris (field beet, subspecies) [taxon 3555], Olea europaea (common olive, species) [taxon 4146], Bombyx mori (domestic silkworm, species) [taxon 7091], Halorubrum sp. (species) [taxon 1879286], Haloarchaeobius sp. (species) [taxon 1930627], Oryza sativa (Asian cultivated rice, species) [taxon 4530], Nitrosopumilus maritimus (species) [taxon 338192], Halococcus sp. (species) [taxon 29286], Halovenus aranensis (species) [taxon 890420], Natronobiforma cellulositropha (species) [taxon 1679076], Homo sapiens (human, species) [taxon 9606], Halobacteria (class) [taxon 183963]
- **Cell lines:** K562 — Homo sapiens (Human), Blast phase chronic myelogenous leukemia, BCR-ABL1 positive, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0004), MCF-7 — Homo sapiens (Human), Invasive breast carcinoma of no special type, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0031), 3T3 — Mus musculus (Mouse), Spontaneously immortalized cell line (CVCL_0594), C2C12 — Mus musculus (Mouse), Spontaneously immortalized cell line (CVCL_0188), CEJ40-10 — Mus musculus (Mouse), Hybridoma (CVCL_C4DR), THP-1 — Homo sapiens (Human), Childhood acute monocytic leukemia, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0006), Caco-2 — Homo sapiens (Human), Colon adenocarcinoma, Cancer cell line (CVCL_0025)

## Figures

7 figures with captions in the complete paper: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12975503/full.md

---
Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/PMC12975503