Fig. 4

Spatial metabolic organization with synthetic compartmentalization. Diagrammatic representation of a synthetic proteinaceous or nanotube micro-compartmentalized organelle can be engineered in microbial cells [149–151]. The organelle consists of a scaffold on which the biosynthetic enzymes can be immobilized to direct the biochemical flux such that the substrate of an enzyme is the product of another juxtaposed enzyme. Toxic byproducts may conceptually be shunt into sub-compartments within the organelle and sequester therein to ensure optimal growth of the microbial host