Lu Xiaocong, Chang Mingxin, Li Xiangyu, Cao Wenbing, Zhuang Zhoukang, Wu Qian, Yu Tao, Yu Aiqun, Tang Hongting
State Key Laboratory of Food Nutrition and Safety, Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology of the Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin, 300457, China.
Center for Synthetic Biochemistry, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes for Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
Microb Cell Fact. 2025 Mar 10;24(1):59. doi: 10.1186/s12934-025-02683-3.
Xylitol, known for its health benefits, is a valuable compound in the food and pharmaceutical industries. However, conventional chemical production methods are often unsustainable for large-scale applications, prompting the need for alternative approaches. This study demonstrates a significant enhancement in xylitol production using microbial cell factories, optimized through metabolic engineering. Two synthetic pathways were combined, and the introduction of a novel NADPH-dependent xylitol dehydrogenase further boosted xylitol yields, achieving 0.14 g xylitol/g glucose-a record-high yield for microbial systems. Additionally, the use of sustainable feedstocks, such as glycerol and methanol, led to the production of 7000 mg/L xylitol with a yield of 0.35 g xylitol/g glycerol, and 250 mg/L xylitol from methanol. These results underscore the potential for eco-friendly, cost-effective xylitol production, providing a robust foundation for future industrial-scale biotechnological applications.
木糖醇因其对健康有益而闻名，是食品和制药行业中的一种重要化合物。然而，传统的化学生产方法在大规模应用中往往不可持续，这促使人们需要寻找替代方法。本研究表明，通过代谢工程优化的微生物细胞工厂在木糖醇生产方面有显著提高。将两条合成途径相结合，引入一种新型的依赖烟酰胺腺嘌呤二核苷酸磷酸（NADPH）的木糖醇脱氢酶进一步提高了木糖醇产量，达到了0.14克木糖醇/克葡萄糖——这是微生物系统的创纪录高产。此外，使用甘油和甲醇等可持续原料，可生产出7000毫克/升的木糖醇，产量为0.35克木糖醇/克甘油，从甲醇中可生产出250毫克/升的木糖醇。这些结果强调了生态友好、具有成本效益的木糖醇生产的潜力，为未来工业规模的生物技术应用奠定了坚实基础。
