Dr Vincent Martin, PhD

Education

BSc (McGill University)
MSc (University of Guelph)
PhD (University of British Columbia)

Research interests

Our laboratory views microbes as small "green" factories that can convert simple carbon sources such as CO2, glucose or renewable biomass into bioproducts such as fuels, commodity and specialty chemicals or pharmaceuticals. Using a combination of functional genomics, metabolic engineering and synthetic biology techniques, we study microbes normally found in the environment to better understand their metabolism and physiology with the purpose of eventually engineering them as alternatives to producing, cleaner, better, cheaper or even novel products.

Microbiology
Industrial and Environmental Biotechnology

1.     Narcross, L.*, M.E. Pyne**, K. Kevvai**, K-H Siu, J.E. Dueber, V.J.J.Martin. 202X. Benzylisoquinoline alkaloid production in yeast vianorlaudanosoline improves selectivity and yield. Submitted.

2.     Thornbury, M.* R.P.Omran**, L. Kumar**, A. Knoops**, R Abushahin*, M. Whiteway, V.J.J. Martin. 2025.Tri-functional CRISPR screen reveals overexpression of QDR2 and QDR3 transportersincrease fumaric acid production in Kluyveromyces marxianus. ACS Synthetic Biology.ASAP article

3.     Thornbury,M.*, A Knoops**, I Summerby-Murray*, J. Dhaliwal**, S. Johnson*, J.C. Utomo** J.Joshi**, L. Narcross**, G. Remondetto, M. Pouliot, M. Whiteway, V.J.J Martin 2025. Sequencing of a dairy isolate unlocks Kluyveromycesmarxianus as a host for lactose valorization. ACS Synthetic Biology 16(7), 2667–2680.

4.     Chester P., M.A. Nasr*, T. Skarina, R. Di Leo, D.H. Kwan, V.J.J.Martin, P.J. Stogios, R. Mahadevan, A. Savchenko. 2024. Functional and structural characterization of an IclR family transcription factor for the development of dicarboxylic acid biosensor. The FEBS Journal.doi.org/10.1111/febs.17149

5.     Husser M.C.*, N.P. Pham, C. Law, FRB Araujo**, V.J.J. Martin, A.J. Piekny. 2024 Endogenous tagging using split mNeonGreen inhuman iPSCs for live imaging studies. eLife Vol 12 pages RP92819

6.     Dykstra, C*, M.E. Pyne*  , V.J.J. Martin.2023. CRAPS: Chromosomal-Repair-Assisted Pathway Shuffling in yeast. ACS Synthetic Biology 12(9) 2578–2587. Co-first authors.

7.     Bagley,J.*, M.E. Pyne**, K. Exley**, K. Kevvai**, Q. Wang, M. Whiteway and V.J.J. Martin. 2023. Genome sequencing of 15 acid-tolerant yeast. Microbiology Resource Announcement. e00337-23.

8.     Pyne, M.E.**, J. Bagley*, L. Narcross*, K. Kevvai**, K. Exley**, M.Davies**, Q. Wang, M. Whiteway, V.J.J. Martin. 2023. Screening non-conventional yeasts for organic acid tolerance and engineering Pichiaoccidentalis for production of muconic acid. Nature Communications 14(1):5294.

9.     Nasr, M.A.*, V.J.J.Martin , D. H. Kwan. 2023. Divergent directed evolution of a TetR-typerepressor towards aromatic molecules. Nucleic Acids Research51(14):7675–7690.

10.     Pyne M.E.** , N.D. Gold**, V.J.J. Martin . 2023. Pathway elucidation and microbial synthesis of proaporphine andbis-benzylisoquinoline alkaloids from sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera). Metabolic Engineering  77, 162-173.

11.     Husser M.C.*, I, Ozugergin, T. Resta, V.J. J. Martin , A.J. Piekny. 2022. Cytokinetic diversity in mammalian cells is revealed by thecharacterization of endogenous anillin, Ect2 and RhoA. Open Biology 12:220247.

12.      Bean, B.D.M.**, M Whiteway, V.J.J.Martin. 2022. The MyLo CRISPR-Cas9Toolkit: A Markerless Yeast Localization and Overexpression CRISPR-Cas9 Toolkit.G3: Genes | Genomes | Genetics  12(8), jkac154.

13.  Bean, B.D.M.**, C. Mulvihill, R.K. Garge, D.R. Boutz, B.J. Floyd, W.Cheney*, O. Rousseau*, A.D. Ellington, E.M. Marcotte, J.D. Gollihar, M. Whiteway, V.J.J.Martin . 2022. Functional expression of opioid receptors and otherhuman GPCRs in yeast engineered to produce human sterols. Nature Communications 13(1):1-15.

14.  Nasr, M.A.*, L.Timmins*, V.J. J. Martin ,D. Kwan. 2022. A versatile transcription factor biosensor systemresponsive to multiple aromatic and indole inducers. ACS Synthetic Biology 11(4):1692-1698.

15.   Pyne M.E.**, V.J.J. Martin. 2022. Microbial synthesis of natural,semi-synthetic, and new-to-nature tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids. Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry  33:100561.