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Published on: October 24, 2016
Engineering Scheffersomyces stipitis for fumaric acid production from xylose
Liang Wei1, Jiao Liu1, Haishan Qi1
1Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, People's Republic of China; SynBio Research Platform, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, People's Republic of China.
This study engineered Scheffersomyces stipitis yeast for fumaric acid production from xylose. Optimized strains achieved a 37.92-fold increase in fumaric acid yield, demonstrating potential for bio-based chemical production.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Synthetic Biology
- Metabolic Engineering
Background:
- Xylose is a key lignocellulosic sugar, but its efficient utilization for chemical production remains a challenge.
- Fumaric acid is a valuable platform chemical with diverse industrial applications.
- Scheffersomyces stipitis is known for its robust xylose fermentation capabilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To engineer Scheffersomyces stipitis for the production of fumaric acid from xylose.
- To enhance fumaric acid yield through metabolic engineering strategies.
- To establish S. stipitis as a viable platform for bio-based fumaric acid synthesis.
Main Methods:
- Heterologous expression of the reductive fumaric acid pathway from Rhizopus oryzae FM19 in S. stipitis.
- Strain engineering including codon optimization of the reductive pathway, knockout of native fumarases, and overexpression of a heterologous transporter.
- Fermentation under oxygen-limited conditions to optimize fumaric acid production.
Main Results:
- The initial engineered strain PSRPMF produced 1.86 g/L of fumaric acid from xylose.
- The optimized strain PSYPMFfS achieved a final fumaric acid titer of 4.67 g/L.
- This represents a significant 37.92-fold increase in fumaric acid production compared to the control strain.
Conclusions:
- Scheffersomyces stipitis can be successfully engineered for fumaric acid production from xylose.
- Metabolic engineering strategies, including pathway optimization and transporter enhancement, are effective in improving yields.
- S. stipitis presents a promising and sustainable platform for the industrial biosynthesis of fumaric acid.
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