An energetic profile of Corynebacterium glutamicum

All processes in microorganisms require energy, primarily provided in form of ATP. While knowing the steps of energy production for a long time, textbooks focus on the best case when analyzing energy production, i.e. the maximum possible amount of ATP per glucose molecule.  However, this value could only be reached under non-growth conditions. But how much ATP do microorganisms have available under normal growth conditions, i.e. especially for industrial substance production?

In a study, the in vivo ATP yield of C. glutamicum is determined for the first time. This was possible by constructing an ATP synthase-deficient mutant in conjunction with a comparative ¹³C flux analysis of wild type and mutant. This allowed quantification of the energy balance without requiring further assumptions about the energy metabolism. The study shows that, despite the branched structure of energy production inherent in all bacteria, detailed quantitative statements can be made about the in vivo state. In summary, C. glutamicum proves to be a very energy-efficient organism, which underpins its diverse use as an industrial platform organism for metabolic production.

Abigail Koch-Koerfges, Armin Kabus, Ines Ochrombel, Kay Marin, Michael Bott: Physiology and global gene expression of a Corynebacterium glutamicum ΔF(1)F(O)-ATP synthase mutant devoid of oxidative phosphorylation. Biochim Biophys Acta, 2012, 1817(2):370-80. PMID: 22050934. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2011.10.006
Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005272811002386

Elisabeth Zelle, Nina Pfelzer, Marco Oldiges, Abigail Koch-Koerfges, Michael Bott, Katharina Nöh, Wolfgang Wiechert: An energetic profile of Corynebacterium glutamicum underpinned by measured biomass yield on ATP. Metabolic Engineeering, 2021, 65:66-78. PMID: 33722651. DOI: 10.1016/j.ymben.2021.03.006
Link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1096717621000422