Synthetic Biology for Synthetic Drugs and Fuels Jay Keasling University of California, Berkeley Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Malaria
Chloroquine-based drugs Source: Roll Back Malaria World Malaria Report 2005
Artemisinin the best anti-malarial drug
Current process Artemisinin Plant synthesis Purification Artesunate Artelinate Arteether Artemether Chemical Conversions
Artemisinin demand analysis Source: Boston Consulting Group 247 in 2006 Malaria Cases (millions) GMAP target 135 in 2020 Total ACT Demand Millions of treatments ACTs delivered (actual) Demand forecasts from other groups BCG Demand forecast scenarios ACTs delivered
Artemisinin price swings Artemisinin prices ($/kg) Food prices (indexed to Jan 2002) Artemisinin prices Commodity food prices Source: Boston Consulting Group
Artemisinin supply Tonnes of Artemisinin Variable production Stock from previous year Historic production Demand Minimum production floor 09 Source: Boston Consulting Group
Current process Artemisinin Plant synthesis Purification Artesunate Artelinate Arteether Artemether Chemical Conversions
Microbial process Artemisinin Microbial synthesis Purification Artesunate Artelinate Arteether Artemether Chemical Conversions
Microbial synthesis of artemisinin
Improvements in yield lower artemisinin costs Current cost of API$1.00/g Cost with new process$.10/g
Research, Development & Delivery Keasling Laboratory Amyris Biotechnologies
Global Warming and Energy Security
Petroleum-based transportation fuels CO 2
Corn to Ethanol CO 2
Corn to Ethanol CO 2
Corn to Ethanol
Corn is not an ideal energy crop Water requirements Fertilizer requirements Bred to be a food crop
CO 2 Biomass to Ethanol
US annual biomass inventory 1.3 billion tons Forest 12.8% Urban waste 2.9% Manure 4.1% Grains 5.2% Crop residues 7.6% Soy 6.2% Wheat straw 6.1% Corn stover 19.9% Perennial crops 35.2% From: Billion ton Vision, DOE & USDA 2005
5 6 7 Billion Barrels of Oil Equivalents US Imports 2007 US Domestic Productio n Fuel yields from biomass using mid-term conversion technology Energy from burning biomass How much fuel can we produce from 1.3 billion tons of biomass? 2007 US Petroleum Consumption 7.6
CO 2 Biomass to Ethanol
Ethanol is not an ideal fuel
Repurposing a microbial production platform
Biofuel
Engineered microbes produce oil and advanced biofuels
Biomass to advanced transportation fuels CO 2
The Joint BioEnergy Institute (jbei) CO 2
jbei: a Bay Area Partnership
jbei’s Research Program CO 2
jbei: a single location
jbei: an incubator for great ideas and the green economy Biofuels Companies Feedstock Companies Chemical Companies Petroleum Companies Plant Genetics Companies Biotech Companies