Metabolic engineering strategies for microbial amino acid production: From molecular mechanisms to systems...

Amino acids serve as fundamental building blocks of proteins and precursors for diverse bioactive molecules, playing pivotal roles in pharmaceutical, food, nutraceutical, and chemical industries. With the rapid advancement of synthetic biology and systems biology, microbial cell factories have emerged as central platforms for sustainable amino acid production. This review adopts a hierarchical constraint-strategy framework comprising three interconnected tiers. At the molecular level, we dissect feedback inhibition mechanisms, enzyme engineering strategies, and cofactor reprogramming. At the network level, we analyze dynamic regulation for flux optimization, growth-coupled strategies that resolve the inherent competition between biomass accumulation and product synthesis, and dynamic redox balancing. At the systems level, we evaluate multi-omics integration, AI-assisted design, and alternative feedstock utilization. Throughout, we critically assess trade-offs and boundary conditions to guide rational strategy selection, driving amino acid biomanufacturing toward efficient and sustainable development.