10. Toward Applications of Genomics and Metabolic Modeling to Improve Algal Biomass Productivity

Genomic sequencing is the first step in a systems level study of an algal species, and sequencing studies have grown steadily in recent years. Completed sequences can be tied to algal phenotypes at a systems level through constructing genome-scale metabolic network models. Those models allow the prediction of algal phenotypes and genetic or metabolic modifications, and are constructed by tying the genes to reactions using enzyme databases, then representing those reactions in a concise mathematical form by means of stoichiometric matrices. This is followed by experimental validation using gene deletion or proteomics and metabolomics studies that may result in adding reactions to the model and filling phenotypic gaps. In this chapter, we offer a summary of completed and ongoing algal genomic projects before proceeding to holistically describing the process of constructing genome-scale metabolic models. Relevant examples of algal metabolic models are presented and discussed. The analysis of an alga’s emergent properties from metabolic models is also demonstrated using flux balance analysis (FBA) and related constraint-based approaches to optimize a given metabolic phenotype, or sets of phenotypes such as algal biomass. We also summarize readily available optimization tools rooted in constraint-based modeling that allow for optimizing bioproduction and algal strains. Examples include tools used to develop knockout strategies, identify optimal bioproduction strains, analyze gene deletions, and explore functional relationships within sets in a metabolic model. All in all, this systems level approach can lead to a better understanding and prediction of algal metabolism leading to more robust and cheaper applications.