From oleaginous microalga to marine chassis: synthetic biology and process-aware biomanufacturing in Nannochloropsis.

Nannochloropsis has advanced from basic transformability to achieving biologically and process-relevant levels of native and non-native products, demonstrating its potential as a marine biomanufacturing chassis.

• Why it matters: Understanding how to develop reliable, predictable, and reusable marine microalgae as bioproduction hosts addresses a key gap in sustainable biomanufacturing and expands options beyond traditional model organisms.
• What they did: Researchers utilized genome resources, transformation techniques, CRISPR/Cas editing, and multigene assembly to modify pathways related to lipids, carotenoids, and proteins in Nannochloropsis, assessing their feasibility for bioproduction.
• The result: The findings suggest that while targeted genome modification is feasible, outcomes are influenced by various factors, and practical chassis configurations will likely be product-specific, supporting Nannochloropsis as a promising marine production platform.