From yeast to opioids: A revolutionary pathway to drug synthesis

How are opioids made? Do opioids only come from poppies? Find the answers in this review of: Complete biosynthesis of opioids in yeast. Galanie S, Thodey K, Trenchard IJ, Filsinger Interrante M, Smolke CD. Science. 2015 Sep 4;349(6252):1095-100. doi: 10.1126/science.aac9373.
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Opioids have been prescribed for thousands of years to manage pain, for example, from a broken bone, a surgery or even a sore back. They are a class of drug designed to block pain signals in the body. Amazing, right? But have you ever thought about how opioids are produced? Traditionally, two flowers, Papaver somniferum and Papaver setigerum (opium poppies) are cultivated, harvested and alkaloids are extracted from the petals and seeds. These alkaloids are more commonly known as substances such as codeine and morphine and can be chemically altered to produce semi-synthetic compounds such as hydrocodone.
Opium poppies pose a great downfall to the agricultural industry in terms of efficiency and cost, as they require specific conditions, time frames and space to grow. This produces relatively low yields of opioids. Due to this, every year, millions of people are missing out on proper pain management. One possible alternative was to artificially engineer opium poppies. This was successful for yield increase, however, did not rectify environmental, space and time-related issues.
So, what if we steered away from plant-based manufacturing and instead focussed on microbial-based manufacturing? That’s right, let’s use Saccharomyces cerevisiae, or Baker’s yeast, to improve opioid production. It is a well-understood organism and eliminates environmental and time-related issues. It is most commonly known for production of beer and bread, but there have also been many advancements in the pharmaceutical industry such as human insulin and various vaccines.
Stephanie Galanie and her team of researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States have spent years developing this alternative opioid production pathway. This video explores the concepts, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of transgenesis in yeast via heterologous expression of plant, bacterial and mammalian genes. It also covers how upregulation and overexpression can be implemented into key steps for improvement of yield. So, this begs the question, “Can opioids be successfully manufactured from yeast?” and “Will it be an improvement over the current plant-based production process?” Let’s find out!
Creator: Tehya
References:
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