Natural Product Heterologous Biosynthesis in Engineered Microorganisms

A special issue of Fermentation (ISSN 2311-5637). This special issue belongs to the section "Microbial Metabolism, Physiology & Genetics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 December 2024) | Viewed by 1410

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Life Sciences and Health Engineering, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Interests: synthetic biology; metabolic engineering; biocatalysis and transformation

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Guest Editor
State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Food Science and Light Industry, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing 211816, China
Interests: biochemical engineering; synthetic biology; metabolic engineering of microorganisms; microbial biopolymer synthesis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the increasing prominence of the global energy crisis and environmental problems, there is a shift towards a green transformation in the traditional industrial manufacturing supply chain that relies on fossil resources. Biomanufacturing technology, as one of the strategic emerging technologies in the bioeconomy, utilizes microorganisms or enzymes to convert inexpensive agricultural resources like starch and glucose into high-value products. This technology offers several advantages, including the use of renewable raw materials, rapid production, clean and efficient processes, and the potential to fundamentally transform the world's industrial manufacturing landscape. In recent years, synthetic biological manufacturing has played a crucial role in the green revolution of traditional industrial manufacturing by synthesizing bio-based products that natural organisms are unable to produce or by replacing less efficient chemical products. There have been numerous industrial achievements in biological manufacturing worldwide, and these advancements are widely utilized in important industrial manufacturing sectors such as the chemical industry, feed production, materials, food, and energy.

Industrial microbial chassis cells have garnered significant interest for their potential in biomanufacturing natural products. In addition to developing new industrial microorganisms, researchers have also started utilizing model microorganisms such as saccharomyces cerevisiae, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, and others to efficiently synthesize various natural products including polyamino acids, melatonin, salidroside, blue copper peptide, astaxanthin, and erythritol. These efforts have yielded promising research outcomes. Biomanufacturing technology encompasses the convergence of life sciences, information science, and engineering, and requires addressing industrialization challenges such as product laboratory research and development, scalable production, and downstream industrial extraction. To overcome the limitations of existing biological systems, researchers can employ techniques like gene synthesis, gene editing, pathway assembly and optimization, and global cell optimization to establish novel cell factories. This accelerates the industrialization process of scientific achievements, fostering the emergence of bio-systems better suited for industrialization.

The objective of this Special Issue is to publish the latest innovative research findings, focusing on the development of new natural products and their efficient synthesis in engineered microorganisms. We are particularly interested in articles and reviews that explore techniques such as genetic modification, gene editing, pathway assembly, and global regulation, as they relate to the synthesis of natural products. If you are planning to submit a review article, please contact one of the Guest Editors in advance to discuss the relevance of your topic.

Dr. Yibin Qiu
Prof. Dr. Hui Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fermentation is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

  • natural products
  • synthesis of high-value products
  • engineering microorganisms
  • inexpensive agricultural raw materials
  • green biomanufacturing
  • gene editing
  • pathway assembly and optimization
  • cellular global optimization
  • novel regulatory techniques

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

22 pages, 2307 KiB  
Review
Bacterial Cellulose: From Biofabrication to Applications in Sustainable Fashion and Vegan Leather
by Dheanda Absharina, Mohamad Padri, Csilla Veres and Csaba Vágvölgyi
Fermentation 2025, 11(1), 23; https://doi.org/10.3390/fermentation11010023 - 8 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1099
Abstract
The rising demand for sustainable materials has led to a significant focus on developing resources from renewable systems, particularly through the integration of biological processes. Bacterial cellulose (BC) has emerged as a highly promising biomaterial, gaining attention across multiple industries, such as food, [...] Read more.
The rising demand for sustainable materials has led to a significant focus on developing resources from renewable systems, particularly through the integration of biological processes. Bacterial cellulose (BC) has emerged as a highly promising biomaterial, gaining attention across multiple industries, such as food, pharmaceuticals, materials science, and textiles, due to its renewable, biodegradable, and eco-friendly characteristics. Within the fashion industry, bacterial cellulose (BC) biofabrication presents a groundbreaking method for producing sustainable textiles and vegan leather. This systematic review emphasizes BC’s pivotal role in advancing sustainable materials, addressing challenges like low yields, strain instability, and high production costs, and exploring innovative biofabrication techniques to overcome these barriers. Current advancements aim to enhance the thickness, uniformity, and mechanical properties of BC layers by optimizing the environmental and nutritional conditions during Komagataeibacter cultivation and leveraging coculturing methods. Furthermore, recent innovations in synthetic biology and genetic engineering have opened new avenues for improving BC biosynthesis, making it a viable solution for the sustainable fashion industry. This review explores three core topics: (1) bacterial cellulose and its applications, (2) the biofabrication of BC for vegan leather, and (3) emerging innovations and patents utilizing bacterial cellulose as a sustainable industrial biomaterial. Full article
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