The present disclosure provides compositions and methods for rapid production of chemicals in genetically engineered microorganisms in a large scale. Also provided herein is a high-throughput metabolic engineering platform enabling the rapid optimization of microbial production strains. The platform, which bridges a gap between current in vivo and in vitro bio-production approaches, relies on dynamic minimization of the active metabolic network.

This document describes biochemical pathways for producing pimeloyl-CoA using a polypeptide having the enzymatic activity of a hydroperoxide lyase to form non-3-enal and 9-oxononanoate from 9-hydroxyperoxyoctadec-10,12-dienoate. Non-3-enal and 9-oxononanoate can be enzymatically converted to pimeloyl-CoA or a salt thereof using one or more polypeptides having the activity of a dehydrogenase, a CoA ligase, an isomerase, a reductase, a thioesterase, a monooxygenase, a hydratase, and/or a thiolase. Pimeloyl-CoA can be enzymatically converted to pimelic acid, 7-aminoheptanoic acid, 7-hydroxyheptanoic acid, heptamethylenediamine, or 1,7-heptanediol, or corresponding salts thereof. This document also describes recombinant microorganisms producing pimeloyl-CoA, as well as pimelic acid, 7-aminoheptanoic acid, 7-hydroxyheptanoic acid, heptamethylenediamine, and 1,7-heptanediol, or corresponding salts thereof.

In an aspect, the disclosure provides methods for making neurotransmitters in a host organism. The neurotransmitters can be cannabinoids and derivatives of cannabinoids. The host cells can be microalgae, fungi or other host cells. In a related aspect, the disclosure provides host cells engineered to have biochemical pathways for making neurotransmitters such as cannabinoids.

The present disclosure provides compositions and methods for rapid production of chemicals in genetically engineered microorganisms in a large scale. Also provided herein is a high-throughput metabolic engineering platform enabling the rapid optimization of microbial production strains. The platform, which bridges a gap between current in vivo and in vitro bio-production approaches, relies on dynamic minimization of the active metabolic network.

The present disclosure describes the engineering of microbial cells for fermentative production of 4-APEA and related products and provides novel engineered microbial cells and cultures, as well as related 4-APEA production methods.

In an aspect, the disclosure provides methods for making neurotransmitters in a host organism. The neurotransmitters can be cannabinoids and derivatives of cannabinoids. The host cells can be microalgae, fungi or other host cells. In a related aspect, the disclosure provides host cells engineered to have biochemical pathways for making neurotransmitters such as cannabinoids.

The disclosure relates to engineered enone reductase polypeptides having improved properties, polynucleotides encoding the engineered polypeptides, related vectors, host cells, and methods for making the engineered enone reductase polypeptides. The disclosure also provides methods of using the engineered enone reductase polypeptides for chemical transformations.

A genetically-modified bacterium, for example of the class Actinobacteria, and the use of such a bacterium in the bioconversion of a steroidal substrate into a steroidal product of interest. A method of converting a steroidal substrate into a steroidal product of interest, wherein the method comprises: inoculating culture medium with genetically-modified bacteria according to any of Claims 1 to 28 and growing the bacterial culture until a target OD.sub.600 is reached; adding a steroidal substrate to the bacterial culture when the target OD.sub.600 is reached; culturing the bacterial culture so that the steroidal substrate is converted to the steroidal product of interest; and extracting and/or purifying the steroidal product of interest from the bacterial culture.

In an aspect, the disclosure provides methods for making neurotransmitters in a host organism. The neurotransmitters can be cannabinoids and derivatives of cannabinoids. The host cells can be microalgae, fungi or other host cells. In a related aspect, the disclosure provides host cells engineered to have biochemical pathways for making neurotransmitters such as cannabinoids.

The present invention relates to a method for preparing a mutant strain having high producibility of phytoene and a mutant strain prepared thereby. More particularly, a Deinococcus radiodurans mutant strain, prepared by the method of the present invention, having high producibility of phytoene, does not retain an artificial antibiotic-resistant gene, although constructed by introducing a metabolism engineering method, and has high producibility of phytoene. Thus, the mutant strain prepared according to the method can find useful applications in the mass production of phytoene.