Metabolic engineering of Yarrowia lipolytica targeting bottlenecks to boost D-Pantothenic acid biosynthesis

Abstract

D-Pantothenic acid (DPA), also known as vitamin B₅, is a water-soluble organic acid, widely applied in foods, feeds, cosmetics, and medicines. Although numerous and rapidly developing cell factories have been established for DPA biosynthesis, there has been no report of any attempts to engineer Yarrowia lipolytica to synthesize DPA. To explore further possibilities in DPA biosynthesis, we tried to employ systematic metabolic engineering strategies to identify and break the potential bottlenecks in DPA biosynthesis by Y. lipolytica. By improving the rate-limiting steps of the DPA biosynthesis pathway, weakening the strongly competitive pathways, and enhancing the multiple cofactor supplies, a robust Y. lipolytica cell factory for DPA biosynthesis was successfully constructed. Consequently, the resulting strain DPA34 produced 2.18 g/L DPA in a 5-L bioreactor, representing the first report of DPA production to date in Y. lipolytica. This work is believed to facilitate the development of Y. lipolytica for sustainable manufacturing of vitamin B₅ and its derivatives.

Keywords

D-Pantothenic acid / Vitamin B₅ / Yarrowia lipolytica / Metabolic engineering / Multi-cofactor engineering / Fed-batch fermentation

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Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China(22478116)

National Key R & D Program of China(2024YFA0917800)

Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipal Government(25HC2810400)

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

The Author(s)