Nitrogen regulator GlnR controls uptake and utilization of non-phosphotransferase-system carbon sources in actinomycetes

• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1508465112
• Publication Date: 2015-12-09T01:57:55Z
• Authors: Cheng-Heng Liao; Lili Yao; Ya Xu; Wei-Bing Liu; Ying Zhou; Bang-Ce Ye
• Keywords: Actinobacteria; 0303 health sciences; 03 medical and health sciences; Nitrogen; PII Nitrogen Regulatory Proteins; ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters; Maltose; Carbon; Saccharopolyspora

Significance Actinomycetes abundantly generate beneficial metabolic products. The efficient coutilization of heterogeneous carbon sources remains a major technical challenge for the industrial-scale production of drugs, chemicals, materials, and fuels by actinomycetes. Here, we present insights into the regulatory mechanisms of uptake and utilization of multiple carbohydrates in actinomycetes. GlnR (central regulator of nitrogen metabolism) was shown to regulate the control of ATP-binding cassette transport systems for secondary, non-phosphotransferase-system carbon sources. By integrating nitrogen signals to modulate the uptake and utilization of multiple carbon sources, GlnR mediates the interplay between nitrogen and carbon metabolism. These findings highlight the potential of actinomycetes in carbon utilization (especially cofermentation of biomass-derived sugars) for biorefinery applications. To our knowledge, our data represent the first systematic description of GlnR-mediated regulation of carbohydrate metabolism in actinomycetes.