Budding yeast as a factory to engineer partial and complete microbial genomes

Area of Science:

• Synthetic biology
• Microbial genomics
• Molecular biology

Background:

• Yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) has a long history as a host for propagating exogenous DNA.
• Advances in genome editing are expanding the capabilities of synthetic biology.
• Engineering microbial genomes in yeast offers potential for rapid response to emerging pathogens.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the use of yeast as a platform for engineering microbial genomes.
• To assess the feasibility and limitations of using yeast for synthetic biology applications.
• To highlight the potential and challenges of rapid genome synthesis and modification.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a host for exogenous DNA propagation.
• Employing genome editing techniques for microbial genome engineering.
• Investigating the rescue of engineered yeast genomes to yield modified bacteria/viruses.

Main Results:

• Efficient engineering of microbial genomes within yeast is achievable.
• The ability to quickly synthesize, assemble, and modify viral and bacterial genomes is demonstrated.
• Limitations include difficulties in cloning large DNA molecules (>2 megabase pairs) and rescuing bacterial genomes.

Conclusions:

• Yeast serves as a valuable "factory" for biological applications, particularly in synthetic biology.
• The technology holds promise for rapid development of countermeasures against emerging pathogens.
• Careful consideration of dual-use potential and technical limitations is essential for responsible advancement.