Yeast as a cell factory: current state and perspectives.

Area of Science:

• Biotechnology and Synthetic Biology
• Microbial Engineering
• Industrial Microbiology

Background:

• Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a long-established microorganism in biotechnology for chemical production.
• Transitioning yeast into a modern cell factory requires advanced engineering for next-generation bioprocesses.
• Synthetic biology principles are key to developing engineered yeast strains as synthetic organisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an overview of key aspects in transforming yeast into advanced cell factories.
• To highlight recent achievements and identify areas where yeast development lags.
• To outline future trends in yeast engineering for bioproduction.

Main Methods:

• Enhancing substrate spectrum for efficient utilization of renewable feedstocks.
• Expanding product spectrum via independent circuits for redox balance and biosynthesis.
• Improving pathway control using genome editing and orthogonal promoters.
• Increasing tolerance to specific stress conditions.

Main Results:

• Development of genetic modules for rapid trait transfer between yeast strains.
• Integration of bio-computational methods for data analysis and algorithm development.
• Advancements in genome editing enabling multiplexed integration of heterologous pathways.

Conclusions:

• Future yeast cell factories will be assembled from modular genetic components.
• Bio-computation and advanced genome editing are crucial for progress.
• The goal is a collection of independent, combinable modules for optimal synthetic hosts.