Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory

Niraula, Archana; Danesh, Amir; Merindol, Natacha; Meddeb-Mouelhi, Fatma; Desgagné-Penix, Isabel

doi:10.3390/biotech14010006

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Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory

by

Archana Niraula

^†,

Amir Danesh

^†

,

Natacha Merindol

,

Fatma Meddeb-Mouelhi

and

Isabel Desgagné-Penix

^*

Department of Chemistry, Biochemistry and Physics, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC G8Z 4M3, Canada

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to the work.

BioTech 2025, 14(1), 6; https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech14010006

Submission received: 25 November 2024 / Revised: 24 January 2025 / Accepted: 27 January 2025 / Published: 29 January 2025

(This article belongs to the Section Industrial Biotechnology)

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Abstract

In recent times, microalgae have emerged as powerful hosts for biotechnological applications, ranging from the production of lipids and specialized metabolites (SMs) of pharmaceutical interest to biofuels, nutraceutical supplements, and more. SM synthesis through bioengineered pathways relies on the availability of aromatic amino acids (AAAs) as an essential precursor. AAAs, phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan are also the building blocks of proteins, maintaining the structural and functional integrity of cells. Hence, they are crucial intermediates linking the primary and specialized metabolism. The biosynthesis pathway of AAAs in microbes and plants has been studied for decades, but not much is known about microalgae. The allosteric control present in this pathway has been targeted for metabolic engineering in microbes. This review focuses on the biosynthesis of AAAs in eukaryotic microalgae and engineering techniques for enhanced production. All the putative genes involved in AAA pathways in the model microalgae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Phaeodactylum tricornutum are listed in this review.

Keywords: shikimate pathway; Chlamydomonas reinhardtii; chorismate mutase; Phaeodactylum tricornutum; metabolic engineering

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MDPI and ACS Style

Niraula, A.; Danesh, A.; Merindol, N.; Meddeb-Mouelhi, F.; Desgagné-Penix, I. Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory. BioTech 2025, 14, 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech14010006

AMA Style

Niraula A, Danesh A, Merindol N, Meddeb-Mouelhi F, Desgagné-Penix I. Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory. BioTech. 2025; 14(1):6. https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech14010006

Chicago/Turabian Style

Niraula, Archana, Amir Danesh, Natacha Merindol, Fatma Meddeb-Mouelhi, and Isabel Desgagné-Penix. 2025. "Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory" BioTech 14, no. 1: 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech14010006

APA Style

Niraula, A., Danesh, A., Merindol, N., Meddeb-Mouelhi, F., & Desgagné-Penix, I. (2025). Aromatic Amino Acids: Exploring Microalgae as a Potential Biofactory. BioTech, 14(1), 6. https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech14010006

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

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