(130a) Invited Talk: Synthetic Biology of Industrial Oleaginous Microorganisms

Microbial biosynthesis is a sustainable and efficient way to produce chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and fuels. Synthetic biology can be used to construct and optimize microbial cell factories that can produce a variety of products. The industrial oleaginous microorganism Yarrowia lipolytica and Schizochytrium sp. can be used for biosynthesis of many high-value products, including polyunsaturated fatty acids, terpenoids, and aromatic-derived product. Our research involved thorough developing genome editing tools, characterizing the endogenous promoters and genomic locus, optimizing the supply of precursors, and screening and improving the performance of key enzymes. Through these efforts, we successfully engineered Schizochytrium sp. for efficient production of polyunsaturated fatty acids and squalene. And, engineering Y. lipolytica for efficient production of gastrodin with titer of 13.4 g/L, α-humulene with titer of 21.7 g/L, (-)-α-bisabolol with titer of 4.4 g/L, and Patchoulol with titer of 2.9 g/L.