Methods and Organisms with Increased Carbon Flux Efficiencies

Assignee: Genomatica, Inc.
Patent Number: 12,435,346 B2
Filed: August 22, 2023
Issued: October 7, 2025
Inventors: Anthony P. Burgard, Robin E. Osterhout, Stephen J. Van Dien, Priti Pharkya, Tae Hoon Yang, Jungik Choi
Classification: Industrial biotechnology / metabolic engineering

What This Patent Covers

This patent protects engineered microbial organisms and methods that have been modified to exhibit increased carbon flux efficiencies through key metabolic pathways, enabling superior conversion of carbon feedstocks into target chemicals.

Key aspects include:

Non‑natural microbial strains with targeted genetic modifications that reroute carbon flow more efficiently toward desired products, rather than waste by‑products.
Enhanced metabolic pathways for improved production of important intermediate and bulk chemicals (e.g., organic acids or alcohols) from renewable feedstocks.
Methods of culturing and using these organisms to produce sustainable petrochemical‑replacing products at higher yields, making biomanufacturing more cost‑competitive.

In essence, instead of relying on traditional petrochemical routes, this invention enables microorganisms to convert sugars or other bio‑based inputs into valuable chemicals with higher efficiency and lower production cost, which is central to Genomatica’s business model in sustainable chemistry.

Why This Patent Is Important

Platform foundation: It strengthens Genomatica’s core metabolic engineering platform — the technology that allows the company to commercialize bio‑based production of chemicals that traditionally come from oil and gas.
Commercial impact: Improved carbon flux can dramatically increase product yields and reduce manufacturing cost, helping make bio‑based alternatives economically viable in large markets (e.g., BDO, nylon precursors, specialty chemicals).
Broad applicability: The engineered organisms and methods can be applied across multiple chemical products, not just one molecule, expanding the potential revenue streams for Genomatica and its partners.
Strategic advantage: With this IP, Genomatica can protect critical improvements in strain performance that are key barriers to competing biotech chemical producers.

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