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Extracellular Metabolite Profiling in CO2-Fixing Bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides Under Autotrophic Conditions
Yu Rim Lee1, Suhyeon Hong2, Young-Hwan Chu3
1Gwangju Clean Energy Research Center, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Gwangju 61003, Republic of Korea.
Metabolites
|March 27, 2026
Summary
Rhodobacter sphaeroides converts CO2 into products. This study reveals lactic acid accumulation and shifts in metabolic pathways during autotrophic growth, offering insights for improved biomanufacturing.
Area of Science:
- Microbial biotechnology
- Metabolic engineering
- Synthetic biology
Background:
- Rhodobacter sphaeroides is a promising platform for biomanufacturing using CO2.
- Understanding extracellular metabolite dynamics is crucial for enhancing CO2-derived product yields.
- Extracellular metabolite profiles of R. sphaeroides under autotrophic conditions were previously unreported.
Purpose of the Study:
- To comprehensively analyze extracellular metabolites produced by R. sphaeroides under autotrophic growth.
- To investigate the transcriptional regulation of metabolic pathways during autotrophic cultivation.
- To provide insights for optimizing CO2 utilization and reducing byproduct formation.
Main Methods:
- Capillary electrophoresis time-of-flight mass spectrometry (CE-TOFMS) for metabolite profiling.
- Liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC-TOFMS) for metabolite profiling.
- Gene expression analysis to correlate with metabolite accumulation.
Main Results:
- 62 putative extracellular metabolites were detected, with 23 quantified.
- Lactic acid showed the highest accumulation, indicating overflow metabolism.
- Key glycolytic genes were downregulated, while fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase (cfxA) was upregulated under autotrophic conditions.
Conclusions:
- Carbon assimilation shifts towards the Calvin-Benson-Bassham (CBB) cycle and lactic acid overflow metabolism in R. sphaeroides.
- Findings provide a basis for reducing extracellular byproducts.
- Insights support the improvement of CO2-based biological production in R. sphaeroides.
