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Research

Biological systems - including the simplest cells - exhibit a broad range of functions to thrive in their environment. Research in the Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology is focused on the possibility of engineering the underlying biochemical processes to solve many of the challenges facing society, from healthcare to sustainable energy. In particular, we model, analyse, design and build biological and biochemical systems in living cells and/or in cell extracts, both exploring and enhancing the engineering potential of biology.

As part of our research we develop novel methods to accelerate the celebrated Design-Build-Test-Learn synthetic biology cycle. As such research in the Centre for Synthetic Biology highly multi- and interdisciplinary covering computational modelling and machine learning approaches; automated platform development and genetic circuit engineering ; multi-cellular and multi-organismal interactions, including gene drive and genome engineering; metabolic engineering; in vitro/cell-free synthetic biology; engineered phages and directed evolution; and biomimetics, biomaterials and biological engineering.

Publications

Citation

BibTex format

@article{Larroude:2017:10.1002/bit.26473,
author = {Larroude, M and Celinska, E and Back, A and Thomas, S and Nicaud, JM and Ledesma, Amaro R},
doi = {10.1002/bit.26473},
journal = {Biotechnology and Bioengineering},
pages = {464--472},
title = {A synthetic biology approach to transform Yarrowia lipolytica into a competitive biotechnological producer of β-carotene},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bit.26473},
volume = {115},
year = {2017}
}

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RIS format (EndNote, RefMan)

TY  - JOUR
AB  - The increasing market demands of β-carotene as colorant, antioxidant and vitamin precursor, requires novel biotechnological production platforms. Yarrowia lipolytica, is an industrial organism unable to naturally synthesize carotenoids but with the ability to produce high amounts of the precursor Acetyl-CoA. We first found that a lipid overproducer strain was capable of producing more β-carotene than a wild type after expressing the heterologous pathway. Thereafter, we developed a combinatorial synthetic biology approach base on Golden Gate DNA assembly to screen the optimum promoter-gene pairs for each transcriptional unit expressed. The best strain reached a production titer of 1.5 g/L and a maximum yield of 0.048 g/g of glucose in flask. β-carotene production was further increased in controlled conditions using a fed-batch fermentation. A total production of β-carotene of 6.5 g/L and 90 mg/g DCW with a concomitant production of 42.6 g/L of lipids was achieved. Such high titers suggest that engineered Y. lipolytica is a competitive producer organism of β-carotene.
AU  - Larroude,M
AU  - Celinska,E
AU  - Back,A
AU  - Thomas,S
AU  - Nicaud,JM
AU  - Ledesma,Amaro R
DO  - 10.1002/bit.26473
EP  - 472
PY  - 2017///
SN  - 1097-0290
SP  - 464
TI  - A synthetic biology approach to transform Yarrowia lipolytica into a competitive biotechnological producer of β-carotene
T2  - Biotechnology and Bioengineering
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bit.26473
UR  - http://hdl.handle.net/10044/1/51674
VL  - 115
ER  -