类胡萝卜素代谢工程

类胡萝卜素能预防癌症和慢性病，并有很强的肿瘤抑制活性，对人体健康有着重要作用，其药用潜力引起人们极大关注。迄今已发现600多种天然类胡萝卜素，但绝大部分都是痕量中间产物，很难用化学法生产。大量类胡萝卜素生物合成基因的克隆为在细菌、酵母和植物中异源生产结构多样类胡萝卜素提供了基础。

METABOLIC ENGINEERING OF CAROTENOID

The fact that carotenoid play an impotant role in prevention of cancer and choronic disease and that they exhibit significant tumor suppression activity has boosted interest in their pharmaceutical potential.More than 600 different carotenoids have been found so far,but most of them exit in only trace quantities in their natural sources and are difficult to be synthesized chemically.A number of expression carotenogenic genes have been cloned from microorganisms and plants.Functional heterologous expression of these genes has made it possible to produce different carotenoids in E.coli ,yeast and plant.