Transcription Factor-Based Biosensor for Dynamic Control in Yeast for Natural Product Synthesis

• Main Authors: Yiming Zhang, Shuobo Shi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-02-01
• Series: Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
• Subjects: yeast; biosensor; natural products; fatty acids; shikimate pathway; MEP/MVA pathway
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2021.635265/full

The synthesis of natural products in yeast has gained remarkable achievements with intensive metabolic engineering efforts. In particular, transcription factor (TF)-based biosensors for dynamic control of gene circuits could facilitate strain evaluation, high-throughput screening (HTS), and adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) for natural product synthesis. In this review, we summarized recent developments of several TF-based biosensors for core intermediates in natural product synthesis through three important pathways, i.e., fatty acid synthesis pathway, shikimate pathway, and methylerythritol-4-phosphate (MEP)/mevalonate (MVA) pathway. Moreover, we have shown how these biosensors are implemented in synthetic circuits for dynamic control of natural product synthesis and also discussed the design/evaluation principles for improved biosensor performance.