Fungi as Cell Factories: Genetic Engineering and Applications

About this Research Topic

Background

Fungal biotechnology has come a long way in the last 10-20 years, propelled by the development of novel genetic engineering and synthetic biology approaches. Fungi have since become crucial players in the new bioeconomy, as exemplified by their utilization as platforms for the production of energy and the synthesis of essential compounds such as citric acid, β-lactam antibiotics, statins, a wide panoply of industrially-relevant enzymes and even some antifungals. To this, a number of innovative applications have recently been added to the realm of fungal biotechnology, including the manufacturing of furniture, packages, building materials, textiles and faux “meat”.

Several features of some fungal species, such as the vigorous growth on inexpensive substrates, amenability for genetic engineering and large-scale production in submerged fermentations, and intrinsic ability to secrete large amounts of protein directly into the culture medium, has turned them into useful instruments for protein and chemical production. Fungi used in this manner, for research or industrial purposes, include Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus oryzae, Trichoderma reesei, Myceliophthora thermophila, Neurospora crassa, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia pastoris, and others. Fungi have thus been dubbed as ‘living factories’ or ‘cell factories’ for their versatile ability to serve as production hosts of various commodities of great economic, environmental and medical importance.

In this Research Topic, we aim to portray recent research advances that revolve around the fields of biotechnology, synthetic biology, genomics, bioinformatics, natural products, and the delineation of biosynthetic pathways in fungi, both from a basic science perspective as well as from an applied angle. We are particularly excited to learn about new research that will enable future applications of fungi as cell factories. We believe that these contributions may prove valuable for our societies to try and digress from petroleum-based materials and curb climate change-related events.

Keywords: genetic engineering, Fungal biotechnology, synthetic biology, secretion, fermentation, biosynthesis, cell factory

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