Characterization of sulfur-compound metabolism underlying wax-ester fermentation in Euglena gracilis.

ABSTRACT: Euglena gracilis is a microalga, which has been used as a model organism for decades. Recent technological advances have enabled mass cultivation of this species for industrial applications such as feedstock in nutritional foods and cosmetics. E. gracilis degrades its storage polysaccharide (paramylon) under hypoxic conditions for energy acquisition by an oxygen-independent process and accumulates high amount of wax-ester as a by-product. Using this sequence of reactions referred to as wax-ester fermentation, E. gracilis is studied for its application in biofuel production. Although the wax-ester production pathway is well characterized, little is known regarding the biochemical reactions underlying the main metabolic route, especially, the existence of an unknown sulfur-compound metabolis

SUBMITTER: Yamada K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6351624 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature