title: Semi-synthetic artemisinin: a model for the use of synthetic biology in pharmaceutical development.
abstract: Recent developments in synthetic biology, combined with continued progress in systems biology and metabolic engineering, have enabled the engineering of microorganisms to produce heterologous molecules in a manner that was previously unfeasible. The successful synthesis and recent entry of semi-synthetic artemisinin into commercial production is the first demonstration of the potential of synthetic biology for the development and production of pharmaceutical agents. In this Review, we describe the metabolic engineering and synthetic biology approaches that were used to develop this important antimalarial drug precursor. This not only demonstrates the incredible potential of the available technologies but also illuminates how lessons learned from this work could be applied to the production of other pharmaceutical agents.
authors.affiliation: Amyris, Inc., 5885 Hollis Street, Suite 100, Emeryville, California 94608, USA.
authors.forename: Chris J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Paddon
authors.affiliation: 1] Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA. [2] Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA. [3] Physical Biosciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA. [4] Joint BioEnergy Institute, 5885 Hollis Street, Emeryville, California 94608, USA.
authors.forename: Jay D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Keasling
mesh_terms: D000962:Antimalarials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D037621:Artemisinins / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D001709:Biotechnology; D015195:Drug Design; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005818:Genetic Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D060847:Metabolic Engineering / Q000379:methods; D010944:Plants / Q000737:chemistry; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D058615:Synthetic Biology; D049490:Systems Biology
chemical_list: D000962:Antimalarials; D037621:Artemisinins; C031327:artemisinin