The field of synthetic biology is increasingly intertwined with engineering disciplines and molecular biology to fabricate novel biological systems with customizable functionalities. This rapidly evolving field is renowned for its ability to engineer biological systems with customizable functions, supporting a broad range of applications spanning therapeutics, sustainable manufacturing, environmental sensing, and beyond. Furthermore, the field deepens our understanding of genetic circuits, gene regulation, expression pathways, regulatory feedback mechanisms, and epigenetic silencing procedures. Cutting-edge genetic circuits and molecular technologies are key players in this arena, ensuring precise control over gene expression and metabolic responses. Although significant advancements have been made, further exploration is needed to understand the fundamental architecture, scalability, and stability of these sophisticated systems.
This Research Topic aims to amalgamate pioneering research at the convergence of molecular biology, synthetic genetic circuitry, and microbial engineering. While impressive progress has been made in designing synthetic circuits, challenges remain in attaining consistent performance, dynamic regulation, and seamless integration with host cellular functions. In microbial cell factories, harmonizing circuit functions with metabolic load, tolerance to stress, and cellular growth dynamics is paramount. Issues like genetic instability, metabolic stress, and unexpected interactions with host networks can undermine circuit performance over time. This Research Topic is dedicated to overcoming these setbacks through designing resilient and adaptable next-generation circuits and molecular tools suitable for diverse microbial chassis.
To gather further insights into promoting microbial engineering, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
• Design and optimization of synthetic genetic circuits in microbial systems • Application of CRISPR, synthetic promoters, and RNA regulators for metabolic control • Development of microbial chassis with enhanced programmability and production traits • Feedback and feedforward control loops for dynamic metabolic regulation • Circuit stability, burden reduction, and orthogonality in microbial hosts • Cross-talk between synthetic circuits and native regulatory networks • Computational modeling and experimental validation of gene regulatory systems • Metabolic engineering for strain development with better programmable and promising traits
Submissions can include: original research, methods, reviews, perspectives, mini-reviews, systematic reviews, hypotheses and theories, editorials, and brief research reports. Contributions advancing sustainable production, industrial biotechnology, and alignment with SDGs (such as health, innovation, and responsible consumption) are particularly encouraged.
Article types and fees
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Brief Research Report
Case Report
Data Report
Editorial
FAIR² Data
FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
General Commentary
Hypothesis and Theory
Methods
Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.
Article types
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
