Abstract

Diffusion Control Analysis Inspires Carotenoid Generation by a Biochemically Engineered Strain

Author(s): Amy George

Genome-scale metabolic models offer a significant advantage in systems biology because their use as metabolic flux simulation models allows for predictions of the production of industrially relevant metabolites. The biotechnological production of lycopene from Yarrowia lipolytica is a new field that has not been thoroughly investigated, particularly in terms of cultivation conditions of newly generated engineered strains. We used flux balance analysis (FBA) and Plackett-Burman design to screen chemicals for lycopene production from a metabolically engineered strain of Y. lipolytica in this study. In fed- batch cultivation, lycopene concentrations of 126 and 242 mg/L were obtained from the FBA-independent and FBA-assisted designed media, respectively. Transcriptional studies revealed up regulations of heterologous genes in FBA-designed media, implying that model predictions are accurate.