Commercial-scale biomanufactured melatonin is here

For the first time, large amounts of melatonin are being made by bacteria. In industrial sized fermentation vats, harmless strains of engineered E. coli bacteria are feeding on glucose and churning out melatonin, the hormone that controls circadian rhythms and serves as a sleep aid.

This large-scale production of pure melatonin by bacteria is one recent example of the expanding biomanufacturing industry. In biomanufacturing, genetically programmed microorganisms serve as biological factories that produce specific products.

This mode of manufacturing is growing in the United States, and around the world, thanks in part to a series of fundamental advances made by bioengineers at the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering.

"The story really is that biomanufacturing is broadening in its range of applications into consumer products. Melatonin is finally out. It is being biomanufactured, and it's competing with organic synthesis," said UC San Diego bioengineering professor Bernhard Palsson, who published an article in Melatonin Research.

In addition to its use as a sleep aid, melatonin is being considered for a much wider range of uses, including skincare, supplements for relaxation drinks, feed additives for aquaculture, and for a range of uses for plants in agriculture.

Image source: UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering/David Baillot.