Production of Useful Terpenoids by Higher-Fungus Cell Factory and Synthetic Biology Approaches.

Higher fungi with greater than 70000 species are regarded as a rich source of various natural compounds including terpenoids, the production of which represents a wide range of interest in pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. This review summarizes the current knowledge of terpenoids synthesized by higher fungi, and highlights the current state-of-the-art regarding genetic manipulation of higher fungi. As the focus, this article will discuss the most recent approaches enabling native hosts and heterologous microbes to efficiently produce various terpenoids, especially with regard to the construction of 'smart' higher-fungus cell factories. The merits and demerits of heterologous versus native hosts as cell factories will also be debated.