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Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Light-Controlled Fermentations for Microbial Chemical and Protein Production
Published on: March 22, 2022
Multidimensional Metabolic Engineering for Green and Sustainable Bioproduction of Serotonin from Glucose in Bacillus
Xinyuan Yang1, Yangyang Wang1, Ji Li1
1State Key Laboratory of Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering, Microbial Cell Factories Engineering Research Center of Hubei Province, College of Life Sciences, Hubei University, 368 Youyi Avenue, Wuchang District, Wuhan 430062, PR China.
Abstract:
Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) plays a critical role in maintaining intestinal health, regulating mood and sleep, and enhancing crop stress tolerance. Here, a Bacillus licheniformis cell factory was developed for the sustainable and efficient synthesis of 5-HT. First, a tryptophan-producing chassis strain, TRP18, was obtained by blocking competitive pathways, modifying the tryptophan operon, and rewiring carbon metabolic flux, and the Trp titer was increased by 23.94-fold over the starting strain, TRP0. Subsequently, a heterologous 5-HT biosynthetic pathway was established, and tryptophan hydroxylase Luz15 was optimized by protein engineering. Finally, the 5-HT pathway was optimized by a dual-cassette system, and an optimal strain, HT-12, was attained, producing 1.23 g/L 5-HT in a 5-L bioreactor, representing the highest titer of 5-HT from glucose in Bacillus species to date. This study provides an efficient and sustainable process for 5-HT production in B. licheniformis, laying the foundation for industrial-scale manufacturing of 5-HT and other Trp-derived biochemicals.
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