Production of fuels and chemicals from engineered microbial cell cultures can be improved by the introduction of control mechanisms routinely deployed in large scale traditional chemical processing. These control mechanisms demand inexpensive, well-characterized, customizable tools for gene regulation that respond fast enough for use as control inputs. Here, we present one such tool: an optogenetic circuit optimized for high expression in the dark—for inducing exogenous metabolic pathways—and low expression under blue light—for minimizing metabolic burden during growth. Crucially, we engineer the circuit to respond within two hours. We show that this new system outperforms the best <i>S. cerevisiae</i> inducible systems. A dynamical systems model of this new circuit is developed and analyzed to demonstrate that it is amenable to effective optimization and control techniques. Finally, we compare this system to the best previously reported optogenetic circuits for lactic acid production, and demonstrate yields that are more than 50% higher.<br/>

Rapid optogenetic inverter circuits for yeast metabolic engineering

2019 Spring National Meeting

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