Synbio-Guided Metabolic Taming of Pseudomonas Putida

The last few years have witnessed an exponential increase in the number of bacteria that can be used as alternative microbial cell platforms in several applications. Alas, the microorganisms which are the easiest to genetically manipulate (i.e., the so-called "model" bacteria, such as Escherichia coli or Bacillus subtilis) are often not adequate to perform given biotechnological applications (e.g., harsh oxidations or dehalogenation reactions). Much of the contemporary Synthetic Biology endeavors relies on the adoption of specific bacterial chasses for plugging-in and -out genetic circuits and engineer new-to-Nature functionalities. Attempts to design robust and predictable biological entities are reminiscent not only of the advances that accompanied the birth of modern engineering, but they also evoke some historical efforts to domesticate animal species for humans' sake. In this background, environmental bacteria, such as Pseudomonas strains, constitute ideal starting points to design flawless microbial platforms, since these microorganisms are pre-endowed with a large number of metabolic and stress-endurance traits which are optimal for biotechnological needs. Our recent developments on the taming of P. putida for biotechnological applications will be discussed in the context of Synthetic Biology strategies for [i] re-designing the metabolic architecture of central carbon catabolism and [ii] manipulating catalytic biofilms through Synthetic Morphology approaches.