| SYNTHESIS |
moved a complete mammalian biosynthetic pathway into a yeast strain, which required engineering 13 genes. The researchers also used a plant enzyme to reroute an endogenous yeast biosynthetic pathway so it produced sterol substrates suitable for the engineered mammalian pathway. And they had to adjust two mitochondrial enzymes and disrupt unwanted side reactions to get the system to work. Hydrocortisone is the major steroid produced by the modified yeast (up to 70% of total steroids). The work provides "a solid basis for the development of an environmentally friendly and low-cost industrial process to substitute for chemical approaches," the researchers note.
|