Harnessing the advances of genetic engineering in microalgae for the production of cannabinoids

Abstract

Cannabis is widely recognized as a medicinal plant owing to bioactive cannabinoids. However, it is still considered a narcotic plant, making it hard to be accessed. Since the biosynthetic pathway of cannabinoids is disclosed, biotechnological methods can be employed to produce cannabinoids in heterologous systems. This would pave the way toward biosynthesizing any cannabinoid compound of interest, especially minor substances that are less produced by a plant but have a high medicinal value. In this context, microalgae have attracted increasing scientific interest given their unique potential for biopharmaceutical production. In the present review, the current knowledge on cannabinoid production in different hosts is summarized and the biotechnological potential of microalgae as an emerging platform for synthetic production is put in perspective. A critical survey of genetic requirements and various transformation approaches are also discussed.

Keywords:

• Cannabinoids
• microalgae
• heterologous expression
• synthetic biology
• nuclear transformation
• chloroplast transformation

Acknowledgments

The author Omayra C. Bolaños-Martínez is a recipient of the Second Century Fund (C2F), Chulalongkorn University, and thanks for the financial support during the research.

Author contributions

S.V.: conceptualization. O.C.B.M.: literature review and writing—original draft preparation. A.M.: writing—review and editing. S.R.M. and S.V.: supervision. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This article was (partially) supported by the Ratchadapisek Sompoch Endowment Fund (2021), Chulalongkorn University (764002-HE02).