Solovchenko Alexei E
Department of Bioengineering, Faculty of Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, 119234, Russia,
Photosynth Res. 2015 Sep;125(3):437-49. doi: 10.1007/s11120-015-0156-3. Epub 2015 May 15.
Massive accumulation of the secondary ketokarotenoid astaxanthin is a characteristic stress response of certain microalgal species with Haematococcus pluvialis as an illustrious example. The carotenogenic response confers these organisms a remarkable ability to survive in extremely unfavorable environments and makes them the richest source of natural astaxanthin. Exerting a plethora of beneficial effects on human and animal health, astaxanthin is among the most important bioproducts from microalgae. Though our understanding of astaxanthin biosynthesis, induction, and regulation is far from complete, this gap is filling rapidly with new knowledge generated predominantly by application of advanced "omics" approaches. This review focuses on the most recent progress in the biology of astaxanthin accumulation in microalgae including the genomic, proteomic, and metabolomics insights into the induction and regulation of secondary carotenogenesis and its role in stress tolerance of the photosynthetic microorganisms. Special attention is paid to the coupling of the carotenoid and lipid biosynthesis as well as deposition of astaxanthin in the algal cell. The place of the carotenogenic response among the stress tolerance mechanisms is revisited, and possible implications of the new findings for biotechnological production of astaxanthin from microalgae are considered. The potential use of the carotenogenic microalgae as a source not only of value-added carotenoids, but also of biofuel precursors is discussed.
大量积累次生酮类胡萝卜素虾青素是某些微藻物种的一种典型应激反应，雨生红球藻就是一个突出的例子。这种类胡萝卜素生成反应赋予这些生物体在极端不利环境中生存的非凡能力，使其成为天然虾青素最丰富的来源。虾青素对人类和动物健康具有诸多有益作用，是微藻最重要的生物产品之一。尽管我们对虾青素的生物合成、诱导和调控的理解还远未完善，但随着主要通过应用先进的“组学”方法产生的新知识，这一差距正在迅速缩小。本综述聚焦于微藻中虾青素积累生物学的最新进展，包括对次生类胡萝卜素生成的诱导和调控及其在光合微生物应激耐受性中的作用的基因组学、蛋白质组学和代谢组学见解。特别关注类胡萝卜素和脂质生物合成的耦合以及虾青素在藻细胞中的沉积。重新审视类胡萝卜素生成反应在应激耐受机制中的地位，并考虑这些新发现对从微藻生物技术生产虾青素的可能影响。还讨论了产类胡萝卜素微藻作为不仅是增值类胡萝卜素，也是生物燃料前体来源的潜在用途。
