title: Efficient utilization of pentoses for bioproduction of the renewable two-carbon compounds ethylene glycol and glycolate.
abstract: The development of lignocellulose as a sustainable resource for the production of fuels and chemicals will rely on technology capable of converting the raw materials into useful compounds; some such transformations can be achieved by biological processes employing engineered microorganisms. Towards the goal of valorizing the hemicellulose fraction of lignocellulose, we designed and validated a set of pathways that enable efficient utilization of pentoses for the biosynthesis of notable two-carbon products. These pathways were incorporated into Escherichia coli, and engineered strains produced ethylene glycol from various pentoses, including simultaneously from D-xylose and L-arabinose; one strain achieved the greatest reported titer of ethylene glycol, 40 g/L, from D-xylose at a yield of 0.35 g/g. The strategy was then extended to another compound, glycolate. Using D-xylose as the substrate, an engineered strain produced 40 g/L glycolate at a yield of 0.63 g/g, which is the greatest reported yield to date.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Beijing Key Laboratory of Bioprocess, College of Life Science and Technology, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing 100029, PR China.
authors.forename: Zheng-Jun
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Center for Industrial Biotechnology and Biocatalysis, Department for Biochemical and Microbial Technology, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Marjan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Mey
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors.forename: Chin Giaw
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors.forename: Haoran
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zurich, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hoeltgen
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. Electronic address: gregstep@mit.edu.
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Stephanopoulos
mesh_terms: D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D019855:Ethylene Glycol / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D006016:Glycolates / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D060847:Metabolic Engineering / Q000379:methods; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways / Q000502:physiology*; D010429:Pentoses / Q000378:metabolism*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D006016:Glycolates; D010429:Pentoses; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C031149:glycolic acid; D019855:Ethylene Glycol
keywords: Ethylene glycol; Glycolate; Hemicellulose; Metabolic engineering; Renewable; Xylose