Scientists have successfully reprogrammed baker's yeast cousin to manufacture cannabis compounds in a laboratory, potentially bypassing the need for acres of hemp plants and unpredictable growing seasons. The engineered microbes produced cannabigerolic acid (CBGA), a precursor to CBD and other therapeutic molecules, at levels that could eventually support commercial production.
The research team, led by Peng Xu at the Guangdong Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, focused on Yarrowia lipolytica, an oleaginous yeast naturally gifted at accumulating oils and generating the molecular building blocks cannabinoids require. Unlike Cannabis sativa plants, which need months to mature and remain vulnerable to drought, pests, and regulatory restrictions, yeast can churn out compounds in stainless steel fermentation tanks year-round.
The cannabinoid synthesis pathway resembles a molecular assembly line with three distinct stations. First, the yeast must produce olivetolic acid (OLA), a ring-shaped molecule constructed from fatty acid precursors. Second, it generates geranyl pyrophosphate (GPP) through the mevalonate pathway. Finally, specialized enzymes called prenyltransferases stitch these components together to form CBGA, the grandmother molecule that plants convert into THC, CBD, and dozens of other cannabinoids.
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