Lygos engineers microbes to convert sugars into high-value, industrial chemicals.
A decade ago, a group of biologists, venture capitalists and computer whizzes gathered under the name “clean tech.” They hoped to overturn polluting industries with microorganisms cheerily excreting industrial chemicals through the miracle of reprogramming nature’s genetic code.
Lygos uses microbugs to convert low-cost sugar into specialty chemicals used in manufacturing, and is now releasing a technique to make malic acid, an ingredient needed in the mass production of electronics.