Research progress on carotenoid production by Rhodosporidium toruloides

AbstractCarotenoids are natural lipophilic pigments, which have been proven to provide significant health benefits to humans, relying on their capacity to efficiently scavenge singlet oxygen and peroxyl radicals as antioxidants. Strains belonging to the genusRhodosporidium represent a heterogeneous group known for a number of phenotypic traits including accumulation of carotenoids and lipids and tolerance to heavy metals and oxidative stress. As a representative of these yeasts,Rhodosporidium toruloides naturally produces carotenoids with high antioxidant activity and grows on a wide variety of carbon sources. As a result,R. toruloides is a promising host for the efficient production of more value-added lipophilic compound carotenoids, e.g., torulene and torularhodin. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the research progress on carotenoid biosynthesis inR. toruloides, focusing on the understanding of biosynthetic pathways and the regulation of key enzymes and genes involved in the process. Moreover, the relationship between the accumulation of carotenoids and lipid biosynthesis, as well as the stress from diverse abiotic factors, has also been discussed for the first time. Finally, several feasible strategies have been proposed to promote carotenoid production byR. toruloides. It is possible thatR. toruloides may become a critical strain in the production of carotenoids or high-value terpenoids by genetic technologies and optimal fermentation processes.Key pointsâ...
Source: European Journal of Applied Physiology - Category: Physiology Source Type: research