Synthetic biology for future food: Research progress and future directions
Xueqin Lv,
Yaokang Wu,
Mengyue Gong,
Jieying Deng,
Yang Gu,
Yanfeng Liu,
Jianghua Li,
Guocheng Du,
Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro,
Long Liu,
Jian Chen
Affiliations
Xueqin Lv
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Yaokang Wu
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Mengyue Gong
School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Jieying Deng
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Yang Gu
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Yanfeng Liu
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Jianghua Li
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Guocheng Du
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro
Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW72AZ, UK
Long Liu
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Corresponding author.
Jian Chen
Science Center for Future Foods, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Key Laboratory of Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China; Corresponding author.
Food is essential to provide energy for human cellular metabolism, and is usually made from plants or animals. Beside plants and animals, other important food sources are made by microorganisms, typically products of fermentation (e.g bread, wine, beer, soy sauce, etc). Nowadays, because of the increasing environmental pollution, climate change and population growth, is becoming challenging to keep the food supply safe, nutritious and sustainable. Importantly, the development of the synthetic biology field enable the engineering of cells that can be used in food manufacturing. These engineered cells can transform renewable raw materials into important food components, functional food additives and nutritional chemicals. This review discusses the major challenges in food industry and how synthetic biology has the potential to revolutionize the future of the food. Finally, the prospects and challenges of synthetic biology for a sustainable food manufacturing are discussed.
