Metabolic Engineering

Metabolic engineering describes the deregulation of biosynthetic pathways to raise the production of desired compounds or to prevent the development of unwished products. Today, Metabolic Engineering also includes the complete transfer of biosynthesis pathways between organisms or the creation of new biosynthesis pathways to new compounds.

In this context, we work with the Metabolic Engineering of the biosynthesis pathway of the anticancer drug Taxol in the baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These days, Taxol gets exclusively synthesized by yews (e.g. the pacific yew Taxus brevifolia), which, caused by slow growth and low production rates, are only of marginal use in the production of Taxol for clinic appliance. Based on the previous work on biosynthesis pathway clarifications, we try to reconstruct the biosynthesis pathway of Taxol, in the well to cultivate baker’s yeast.