A synergistic strategy of metabolic engineering and flocculation recycling for enhanced acetoin production in <i>Zymomonas mobilis</i>.

ABSTRACT: Acetoin, a valuable platform chemical, faces sustainability challenges in its traditional energy-intensive synthesis. Microbial fermentation using microorganisms such as Zymomonas mobilis offers a promising alternative. To overcome metabolic limitations and process inefficiencies of economic acetoin production, we integrated strategies of metabolic engineering, transcriptomic-guided analysis, flocculation-based cell recycling, and non-food feedstock utilization. A dominant metabolism compromised intermediate (DMCI) chassis of Z. mobilis was constructed by deleting ethanol production and acetoin degradation pathways. Transcriptomics was then employed to identify and knockout latent competing pathway genes of ZMO0318 and ZMO1576 to enhance acetoin production. The

SUBMITTER: Bao W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12855597 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature