A CABBI team from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Princeton University re-engineered the metabolism of the yeast Issatchenkia orientalis to supercharge its fermentation of plant glucose into succinic acid—an important industrial chemical used in food additives and a diverse array of agricultural and pharmaceutical products. Since I. orientalis can tolerate highly acidic conditions, it’s an ideal host for organic acid production.
This natural fermentation process, relying on yeasts and renewable plant material, is more environmentally friendly than conventional production using petrochemicals. But cost remains a barrier to commercial adoption, according to a lead author on the study.
