Evaluating the capabilities of microbial chemical production using genome-scale metabolic models

As the field of metabolic engineering advances, it is becoming essential to have a systems-level understanding of the chemical production capabilities of microorganisms. Genome-scale metabolic modeling is being used to gain this understanding, both by investigating the overall metabolic potential of microorganisms for chemical production and by incorporating increasingly complex information on the physical limits of metabolism (i.e. stoichiometry, thermodynamics, and kinetics). The development of metabolic models with advanced tools for examining these limits will enable a better understanding of how metabolic networks are physically constrained and, ultimately, of how these limits can be overcome to expand the possibilities of microbial chemical production.