The present invention relates to a recombinant Deinococcus bacterium exhibiting enhanced 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate/1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate (MEP/DXP) pathway, and its use for producing terpene or terpenoid compounds.

Described herein are methods of producing (+)-manool, the methods including: contacting geranylgeranyl diphosphate with a copalyl diphosphate (CPP) synthase to form a (9S, 10S)-copalyl diphosphate and contacting the CPP with a sclareol synthase enzyme to form (+)-manool and derivatives thereof. Also described herein are nucleic acids encoding CPP synthases and sclareol synthases for use in the methods. Further described herein are expression vectors and non-human host organisms and cells including nucleic acids encoding a CPP synthase and a sclareol synthase as described herein.

The present disclosure provides recombinant microorganisms and methods for the production of 4-HMF, 2,4-furandimethanol, furan-2,4-dicarbaldehyde, 4-(hydroxymethyl)furoic acid, 2-formylfuran-4-carboxylate, 4-formylfuran-2-carboxylate, and/or 2,4-FDCA from a carbon source. The method provides for engineered microorganisms that express endogenous and/or exogenous nucleic acid molecules that catalyze the conversion of a carbon source into 4-HMF, 2,4-furandimethanol, furan-2,4-dicarbaldehyde, 4-(hydroxymethyl)furoic acid, 2-formylfuran-4-carboxylate, 4-formylfuran-2-carboxylate, and/or 2,4-FDCA. The disclosure further provides methods of producing polymers derived from 4-HMF, 2,4-furandimethanol, furan-2,4-dicarbaldehyde, 4-(hydroxymethyl)furoic acid, 2-formylfuran-4-carboxylate, 4-formylfuran-2-carboxylate, and/or 2,4-FDCA.

Described herein are methods of producing (+)-manool, the methods including: contacting geranylgeranyl diphosphate with a copalyl diphosphate (CPP) synthase to form a (9S, 10S)-copalyl diphosphate and contacting the CPP with a sclareol synthase enzyme to form (+)-manool and derivatives thereof. Also described herein are nucleic acids encoding CPP synthases and sclareol synthases for use in the methods. Further described herein are expression vectors and non-human host organisms and cells including nucleic acids encoding a CPP synthase and a sclareol synthase as described herein.

The present disclosure relates to engineered microorganisms capable of producing gadusol. The engineered microorganisms contain a nucleotide sequence encoding 2-epi-5-valione synthase (EEVS) and a nucleotide sequence encoding methyltransferase-oxidoreductase (MT-Ox). Methods of using the engineered microorganisms to produce gadusol, including the culturing of such microorganisms, are also described.

Described herein is a method of producing a drimane sesquiterpene such as albicanol, drimenol and/or derivatives thereof by contacting at least one polypeptide with farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) with a polypeptide comprising a Haloacid dehalogenase (HAD)-like hydrolase domain and having bifunctional terpene synthase activity. The method may be performed in vitro or in vivo. Also described herein are amino acid sequences of polypeptides useful in the methods and nucleic acids encoding the polypeptides described. The described method further provides host cells or organisms genetically modified to express the polypeptides and useful to produce a drimane sesquiterpene such as albicanol, drimenol and/or derivatives thereof.

Described herein is a method of producing drimenol and/or drimenol derivatives, the method including contacting at least one polypeptide with farnesyl diphosphate (FPP). The method may be performed in vitro or in vivo. Also described herein are amino acid sequences of polypeptides useful in the methods and nucleic acids encoding the polypeptides described. Also described herein are host cells or organisms genetically modified to express the polypeptides and useful to produce drimenol and/or derivatives of drimenol.

The present invention provides for a fusion protein comprising: (a) a terpene synthase (TS), or a homolog thereof, (b) a peptide linker, and (c) a P450 enzyme, or a homolog thereof.

The invention provides non-naturally occurring microbial organisms containing an alkene pathway having at least one exogenous nucleic acid encoding an alkene pathway enzyme expressed in a sufficient amount to convert an alcohol to an alkene. The invention additionally provides methods of using such microbial organisms to produce an alkene, by culturing a non-naturally occurring microbial organism containing an alkene pathway as described herein under conditions and for a sufficient period of time to produce an alkene.

Described herein is a method of producing a drimane sesquiterpene such as albicanol, drimenol and/or derivatives thereof by contacting at least one polypeptide with farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) with a polypeptide including a Haloacid dehalogenase (HAD)-like hydrolase domain and having bifunctional terpene synthase activity. The method may be performed in vitro or in vivo. Also described herein are amino acid sequences of polypeptides useful in the methods and nucleic acids encoding the polypeptides described. The described method further provides host cells or organisms genetically modified to express the polypeptides and useful to produce a drimane sesquiterpene such as albicanol, drimenol and/or derivatives thereof.