Photoreceptor network-modulated opto-biomanufacturing of bioactives from green lineage simply by illumination

Light is an essential key player in biomass and metabolite production in microalgae and the green lineage system. Light-sensing proteins (photoreceptors) can influence photosynthesis fitness, thereby regulating biomass and various metabolic activities. However, genetic engineering is mainly employed for enhancing astaxanthin (an important therapeutic bioactive metabolite) production in C. reinhardtii . In the present study, for the first time, we report opto-biomaufacturing of astaxanthin under blue light illumination in C. reinhardtii without any genetic modification. Moreover, we identified light-regulated biosynthetic gene cluster mediated metabolite production in green lineage. We employed data-driven systems biology-based analysis, array of biochemical and molecular techniques to investigate the imperative effect of different illumination conditions on metabolite production. The results indicated that blue light substantially enhances the biomanufacturing of astaxanthin and pigments via the photoreceptor. Thus, it suggests that fine-tuned illumination conditions modulate molecular components in specific metabolite production. Moreover, crosstalk between photoreceptors with the protein family of carotenoid metabolic pathway, cell signalling, and identified biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) in green lineage opens a new avenue in opto-biotechnology approaches for bioproducts generation from the green lineage system and other organisms simply by illumination.