Identification and importance of mitochondrial citrate carriers and ATP citrate lyase for glycolipid production in Starmerella bombicola.

Identification and importance of mitochondrial citrate carriers and ATP citrate lyase for glycolipid production in Starmerella bombicola. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2020 May 30;: Authors: Jezierska S, Claus S, Van Bogaert INA Abstract Starmerella bombicola is a non-conventional yeast commercially used as a microbial cell factory for sophorolipid production. Sophorolipids are glycolipid biosurfactants composed of a glucose disaccharide sophorose and a fatty acid. In de novo sophorolipid synthesis, the fatty acid moiety is derived from the fatty acid synthesis (FAS) complex; therefore, the yeast's lipid metabolism plays a crucial role in sophorolipid biosynthesis. As a fatty acid precursor, citric acid is a key primary metabolite that connects carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, and in S. bombicola, it also has a regulatory effect on sophorolipid composition and productivity. We aimed to identify the mitochondrial transporters involved in citrate shuttling and the ATP citrate lyase (Acl), the enzyme that converts citric acid into acetyl-CoA. Subsequently, we studied their role in the citric acid shuttle and glycolipid synthesis and the potential of citrate metabolism as a genetic manipulation target for increased glycolipid synthesis. Bioinformatics analyses predicted 32 mitochondrial carriers of which two were identified as citrate transporters, named SbCtp1 and SbYhm2. Deletion of these mitochondrial carriers led to a lesser sophoroli...
Source: Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology - Category: Microbiology Authors: Tags: Appl Microbiol Biotechnol Source Type: research