Deletion of methylglyoxal synthase gene (mgsA) increased sugar co-metabolism in ethanol-producing Escherichia coli

• Published in: Biotechnology letters Vol. 31; no. 9; pp. 1389 - 1398
• Main Authors: Yomano, L. P, York, S. W, Shanmugam, K. T, Ingram, L. O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Dordrecht : Springer Netherlands 01-09-2009; Springer Netherlands; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Applied Microbiology; Biochemistry; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Carbohydrate Metabolism; Carbon-Oxygen Lyases - genetics; Catalysts; Deletion; DNA, Bacterial - chemistry; DNA, Bacterial - genetics; E coli; Enzymes; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli - enzymology; Escherichia coli - metabolism; Escherichia coli Proteins - genetics; Ethanol; Ethanol - metabolism; Ethyl alcohol; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Deletion; Genes; Glucose; Life Sciences; Lignin - metabolism; Metabolism; Microbiology; Modulation; Molecular Sequence Data; Original Research Paper; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Sugar; Sugars; Xylose; Xylose; Arabinose; Catabolite repression; Glucose; Ethanol; Methylglyoxal synthase; Enzyme; Escherichia coli; Lyases; Cometabolism; Gene; Deletion; Bacteria; Carbon-oxygen lyases; Sugar; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae; Catabolic repression
• ISSN: 0141-5492; 1573-6776
• DOI: 10.1007/s10529-009-0011-8

The use of lignocellulose as a source of sugars for bioproducts requires the development of biocatalysts that maximize product yields by fermenting mixtures of hexose and pentose sugars to completion. In this study, we implicate mgsA encoding methylglyoxal synthase (and methylglyoxal) in the modulation of sugar metabolism. Deletion of this gene (strain LY168) resulted in the co-metabolism of glucose and xylose, and accelerated the metabolism of a 5-sugar mixture (mannose, glucose, arabinose, xylose and galactose) to ethanol.