Combining metabolic engineering and metabolic evolution to develop nonrecombinant strains of Escherichia coli C that produce succinate and malate

Derivatives of Escherichia coli C were engineered to produce primarily succinate or malate in mineral salts media using simple fermentations (anaerobic stirred batch with pH control) without the addition of plasmids or foreign genes. This was done by a combination of gene deletions (genetic engineering) and metabolic evolution with over 2,000 generations of growth-based selection. After deletion of the central anaerobic fermentation genes (ldhA, adhE, ackA), the pathway for malate and succinate production remained as the primary route for the regeneration of NAD+. Under anaerobic conditions, ATP production for growth was obligately coupled to malate dehydrogenase and fumarate reductase by the requirement for NADH oxidation. Selecting strains for improved growth co-selected increased production of these dicarboxylic acids. Additional deletions were introduced as further improvements (focA, pflB, poxB, mgsA). The best succinate biocatalysts, strains KJ060(ldhA, adhE, ackA, focA, pflB) and KJ073(ldhA, adhE, ackA, focA, pflB, mgsA, poxB), produce 622-733 mM of succinate with molar yields of 1.2-1.6 per mole of metabolized glucose. The best malate biocatalyst, strain KJ071(ldhA, adhE, ackA, focA, pflB, mgsA), produced 516 mM malate with molar yields of 1.4 per mole of glucose metabolized.     

Efficient succinic acid production from glucose through overexpression of pyruvate carboxylase in an Escherichia coli alcohol dehydrogenase and lactate dehydrogenase mutant

An adhE, ldhA double mutant Escherichia coli strain, SBS110MG, has been constructed to produce succinic acid in the presence of heterologous pyruvate carboxylase (PYC). The strategic design aims at diverting maximum quantities of NADH for succinate synthesis by inactivation of NADH competing pathways to increase succinate yield and productivity. Additionally an operational PFL enzyme allows formation of acetyl-CoA for biosynthesis and formate as a potential source of reducing equivalents. Furthermore, PYC diverts pyruvate toward OAA to favor succinate generation. SBS110MG harboring plasmid pHL413, which encodes the heterologous pyruvate carboxylase from Lactococcus lactis, produced 15.6 g/L (132 mM) of succinate from 18.7 g/L (104 mM) of glucose after 24 h of culture in an atmosphere of CO(2) yielding 1.3 mol of succinate per mole of glucose. This molar yield exceeded the maximum theoretical yield of succinate that can be achieved from glucose (1 mol/mol) under anaerobic conditions in terms of NADH balance. The current work further explores the importance of the presence of formate as a source of reducing equivalents in SBS110MG(pHL413). Inactivation of the native formate dehydrogenase pathway (FDH) in this strain significantly reduced succinate yield, suggesting that reducing power was lost in the form of formate. Additionally we investigated the effect of ptsG inactivation in SBS110MG(pHL413) to evaluate the possibility of a further increase in succinate yield. Elimination of the ptsG system increased the succinate yield to 1.4 mol/mol at the expense of a reduction in glucose consumption of 33%. In the presence of PYC and an efficient conversion of glucose to products, the ptsG mutation is not indispensable since PEP converted to pyruvate as a result of glucose phosphorylation by the glucose specific PTS permease EIICB(glu) can be rediverted toward OAA favoring succinate production.     

烟酸转磷酸核糖激酶和丙酮酸羧化酶共表达对大肠杆菌BA002产丁二酸的影响

大肠杆菌BA002是敲除了乳酸脱氢酶的编码基因 (ldhA) 和丙酮酸-甲酸裂解酶的编码基因 (pflB) 的工程菌。厌氧条件下NADH不能及时再生为NAD+,引起胞内辅酶NAD(H)的不平衡,最终导致厌氧条件下菌株不能利用葡萄糖生长代谢。pncB是烟酸转磷酸核糖激酶 (NAPRTase) 的编码基因,通过过量表达pncB基因能够提高NAD(H)总量与维持合适的NADH/NAD+,从而恢复了厌氧条件下重组菌E. coli BA014 (BA002/pTrc99a-pncB) 的生长和产丁二酸的性能。然而,BA014在厌氧发酵过程中有大量丙酮酸积累,为进一步提高菌株的丁二酸生产能力,减少副产物丙酮酸的生成,共表达NAPRTase和来自于乳酸乳球菌 NZ9000中丙酮酸羧化酶 (PYC) 的编码基因pyc,构建了重组菌E. coli BA016 (BA002/pTrc99a-pncB-pyc)。3 L发酵罐结果表明,BA016发酵112 h后,共消耗了35.00 g/L的葡萄糖。发酵结束时,菌体OD600为4.64,产生了25.09 g/L丁二酸。通过共表达pncB和pyc基因,使BA016的丙酮酸积累进一步降低,丁二酸产量进一步提高。     

The effects of feed and intracellular pyruvate levels on the redistribution of metabolic fluxes in Escherichia coli

In a previous study, an Escherichia coli strain lacking the key enzymes (acetate kinase and phosphotransacetylase, ACK-PTA) of the major acetate synthesis pathways reduced acetate accumulation. The ackA-pta mutant strain also exhibits an increased lactate synthesis rate. Metabolic flux analysis suggested that the majority of excessive carbon flux was redirected through the lactate formation pathway rather than the ethanol synthesis pathway. This result indicated that lactate dehydrogenase may be competitive at the pyruvate node. However, a 10-fold overexpression of the fermentative lactate dehydrogenase (ldhA) gene in the wild-type parent GJT001 was not able to divert carbon flux from acetate. The carbon flux through pyruvate and all its end products increases at the expense of flux through biosynthesis and succinate. Intracellular pyruvate measurements showed that strains overexpressing lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) depleted the pyruvate pool. This observation along with the observed excretion of pyruvate in the ackA-pta strain indicates the significance of intracellular pyruvate pools. In the current study, we focus on the role of the intracellular pyruvate pool in the redirection of metabolic fluxes at this important node. An increasing level of extracellular pyruvate leads to an increase in the intracellular pyruvate pool. This increase in intracellular pyruvate affects carbon flux distribution at the pyruvate node. Partitioning of the carbon flux to acetate at the expense of ethanol occurs at the acetyl-CoA node while partitioning at the pyruvate node favors lactate formation. The increased competitiveness of the lactate pathway may be due to the allosteric activation of LDH as a result of increased pyruvate levels. The interaction between the reactions catalyzed by the enzymes PFL (pyruvate formate lyase) and LDH was examined.     

Effect of ArcA and FNR on the expression of genes related to the oxygen regulation and the glycolysis pathway in Escherichia coli under microaerobic growth conditions

Escherichia coli has several elaborate sensing mechanisms for response to the availability of oxygen and the presence of other electron acceptors. The adaptive responses are coordinated by a group of global regulators, which include the one-component Fnr protein, and the two-component Arc system. To quantitate the contribution of Arc and FNR dependent regulation under microaerobic conditions, the gene expression pattern of the fnr the arcA and arcB regulator genes, and the glycolysis related genes in a wild-type E. coli, an arcA mutant, an fnr mutant, and a double arcA, fnr mutant, in glucose limited cultures and different oxygen concentrations was studied in chemostat cultures at steady state using QRT-PCR. It was found that ArcA has a negative effect on fnr expression under microaerobic conditions. Moreover, the expression levels of the FNR regulated genes, yfiD and frdA, were higher in cultures of the arcA mutant strain compared to the wild-type. These imply that a higher level of the FNR regulator is in the activated form in cultures of the arcA mutant strain compared to the wild-type during the transition from aerobic to microanaerobic growth. The results also show that the highest expression level of aceE, pflB, and adhE were obtained in cultures of the arcA mutant strain under microaerobic growth while higher levels of ldhA expression were obtained in cultures of the arcA mutant strain and the arcA, fnr double mutant strain compared to the wild-type and the fnr mutant strain. While the highest expression of adhE and pflB in cultures of the arcA mutant strain can explain the previous report of high ethanol flux and flux through pyruvate formate lyase (PFL) in cultures of this strain, the higher level of ldhA expression was not sufficient to explain the trend in lactate fluxes. The results indicate that lower conversion of pyruvate to acetyl-CoA is the main reason for high fluxes through lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in cultures of the arcA, fnr double mutant strain.     

Regulation of NAD(H) pool and NADH/NAD(+) ratio by overexpression of nicotinic acid phosphoribosyltransferase for succinic acid production in Escherichia coli NZN111

Succinic acid is not the dominant fermentation product from glucose in wild-type Escherichia coli W1485. To reduce byproduct formation and increase succinic acid accumulation, pyruvate formate-lyase and lactate dehydrogenase, encoded by pflB and ldhA genes, were inactivated. However, E. coli NZN111, the ldhA and pflB deletion strain, could not utilize glucose anaerobically due to the block of NAD(+) regeneration. To restore glucose utilization, overexpression of nicotinic acid phosphoribosyltransferase, a rate limiting enzyme of NAD(H) synthesis encoded by the pncB gene, resulted in a significant increase in cell mass and succinic acid production. Furthermore, the results indicated a significant increase in NAD(H) pool size, and decrease in the NADH/NAD(+) ratio from 0.64 to 0.13, in particular, the concentration of NAD(+) increased 6.2-fold during anaerobic fermentation. In other words, the supply of enough NAD(+) for NADH oxidation by regulation of NAD(H) salvage synthesis mechanism could improve the cell growth and glucose utilization anaerobically. In addition, the low NADH/NAD(+) ratio also change the metabolite distribution during the dual-phase fermentation. As a result, there was a significant increase in succinic acid production, and it is provided further evidence that regulation of NAD(H) pool and NADH/NAD(+) ratio was very important for succinic acid production.     

A substrate-selective co-fermentation strategy with Escherichia coli produces lactate by simultaneously consuming xylose and glucose

We describe a new approach for the simultaneous conversion of xylose and glucose sugar mixtures which potentially could be used for lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysate. In this study we used this approach to demonstrate the production of lactic acid. This process uses two substrate-selective strains of Escherichia coli, one which is unable to consume glucose and one which is unable to consume xylose. In addition to knockouts in pflB encoding for pyruvate formate lyase, the xylose-selective (glucose deficient) strain E. coli ALS1073 has deletions of the glk, ptsG, and manZ genes while the glucose-selective (xylose deficient) strain E. coli ALS1074 has a xylA deletion. By combining these two strains in a single process the xylose and glucose in a mixed sugar solution are simultaneously converted to lactate. Furthermore, the biomass concentrations of each strain can readily be adjusted in order to optimize the overall product formation. This approach to the utilization of mixed sugars eliminates the problem of diauxic growth, and provides great operational flexibility.     

乳糖诱导丙酮酸羧化酶基因在大肠杆菌中的表达及对丁二酸产量的影响

大肠杆菌DC1515是敲除葡萄糖磷酸转移酶(ptsG)、乳酸脱氢酶(ldhA)、丙酮酸甲酸裂解酶(pflA)基因的菌株,具有发酵生产丁二酸的潜力。为进一步提高菌株DC1515的丁二酸生产能力,将枯草芽孢杆菌丙酮酸羧化酶(pyc)基因转入其中。用乳糖代替IPTG诱导pyc表达,确定了最佳乳糖加入时间、乳糖浓度及诱导温度。在此基础上,考察了补加乳糖对丁二酸产量的影响。结果表明:由于ptsG基因缺失,当培养基中葡萄糖浓度达到15g/L时,乳糖诱导作用并不受葡萄糖抑制。优化诱导条件后,pyc过表达菌株的丁二酸产量达15.17g/L,为对照菌株的1.78倍。间歇补加乳糖2次至浓度为1g/L,丁二酸产量可进一步增至17.54g/L。研究结果为以葡萄糖为底物生产丁二酸的过程中乳糖诱导外源基因在大肠杆菌中的表达奠定了基础。乳糖诱导降低了成本,有利于实现丁二酸发酵生产的工业化。     

大肠杆菌工程菌ptsG基因敲除及其缺陷株混合糖同型乙醇发酵

为实现可同时利用木糖和葡萄糖进行生产发酵,以产乙醇的大肠杆菌工程菌SZ470为出发菌株(△pflB,△frdABCD,△ackA,△ldhA),采用同源重组技术,敲除葡萄糖转运基因ptsG,以构建不受葡萄糖抑制效应影响的菌株SZ470P.SZ470P在5％混合糖(2.5％木糖和2.5％葡萄糖)培养基中能同时利用葡萄糖和木糖进行发酵,葡萄糖消耗量是13 g/L,为对照菌株SZ470的一半;木糖消耗量是20 g/L,是SZ470的3.8倍;乙醇的最高产量为15.01 g/L,转化率为89.13％,比SZ470提高了14.32％.结果表明,工程菌SZ470P可同时利用葡萄糖和木糖发酵生产高产量的乙醇.     

大肠杆菌ptsG和ptsM突变体的构建及特性研究

目的：敲除大肠杆菌DH5α中与葡萄糖磷酸化转运相关的ptsG、ptsM基因,考察缺陷株生长特性及其可能的应用。方法：PCR扩增靶基因,构建两翼带有靶基因序列并嵌合抗药基因标记的线性片段,利用Red同源重组技术敲除靶基因。结果：成功敲除了大肠杆菌DH5α的ptsG和ptsM基因;在含有葡萄糖的LB培养基中,DH5αΔptsG最高菌密度是亲本的2.8倍,添加吡咯喹啉醌或导入其生物合成基因后能够产酸;DH5αΔptsM最高菌密度是亲本的4/10,有明显的产酸现象。结论：DH5αΔptsG可用于大肠杆菌高密度发酵和吡咯喹啉醌生物合成基因缺陷株筛选。     

Effect of overexpression of Actinobacillus succinogenes phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase on succinate production in Escherichia coli

Succinate fermentation was investigated in Escherichia coli strains overexpressing Actinobacillus succinogenes phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK). In E. coli K-12, PEPCK overexpression had no effect on succinate fermentation. In contrast, in the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase mutant E. coli strain K-12 ppc::kan, PEPCK overexpression increased succinate production 6.5-fold.     

Evaluation of Genetic Manipulation Strategies on d-Lactate Production by Escherichia coli

In order to rationally manipulate the cellular metabolism of Escherichia coli for D: -lactate production, single-gene and multiple-gene deletions with mutations in acetate kinase (ackA), phosphotransacetylase (pta), phosphoenolpyruvate synthase (pps), pyruvate formate lyase (pflB), FAD-binding D-lactate dehydrogenase (dld), pyruvate oxidase (poxB), alcohol dehydrogenase (adhE), and fumarate reductase (frdA) were tested for their effects in two-phase fermentations (aerobic growth and oxygen-limited production). Lactate yield and productivity could be improved by single-gene deletions of ackA, pta, pflB, dld, poxB, and frdA in the wild type E. coli strain but were unfavorably affected by deletions of pps and adhE. However, fermentation experiments with multiple-gene mutant strains showed that deletion of pps in addition to ackA-pta deletions had no effect on lactate production, whereas the additional deletion of adhE in E. coli B0013-050 (ackA-pta pps pflB dld poxB) increased lactate yield. Deletion of all eight genes in E. coli B0013 to produce B0013-070 (ackA-pta pps pflB dld poxB adhE frdA) increased lactate yield and productivity by twofold and reduced yields of acetate, succinate, formate, and ethanol by 95, 89, 100, and 93%, respectively. When tested in a bioreactor, E. coli B0013-070 produced 125 g/l D-lactate with an increased oxygen-limited lactate productivity of 0.61 g/g h (2.1-fold greater than E. coli B0013). These kinetic properties of D-lactate production are among the highest reported and the results have revealed which genetic manipulations improved D-lactate production by E. coli.     

Engineering a homobutanol fermentation pathway in Escherichia coli EG03

A homobutanol fermentation pathway was engineered in a derivative of Escherichia coli B (glucose [glycolysis] => 2 pyruvate + 2 NADH; pyruvate [pyruvate dehydrogenase] => acetyl-CoA + NADH; 2 acetyl-CoA [butanol pathway enzymes] + 4 NADH => butanol; summary stoichiometry: glucose => butanol). Initially, the native fermentation pathways were eliminated from E. coli B by deleting the genes encoding for lactate dehydrogenase (ldhA), acetate kinase (ackA), fumarate reductase (frdABCD), pyruvate formate lyase (pflB), and alcohol dehydrogenase (adhE), and the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (aceEF-lpd) was anaerobically expressed through promoter replacement. The resulting strain, E. coli EG03 (ΔfrdABCD ΔldhA ΔackA ΔpflB Δ adhE ΔpdhR ::pflBp6-aceEF-lpd ΔmgsA), could generate 4 NADH for every glucose oxidized to two acetyl-CoA through glycolysis and the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex. However, EG03 lost its ability for anaerobic growth due to the lack of NADH oxidation pathways. When the butanol pathway genes that encode for acetyl-CoA acetyltransferase (thiL), 3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (hbd), crotonase (crt), butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (bcd, etfA, etfB), and butyraldehyde dehydrogenase (adheII) were cloned from Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824, and expressed in E. coli EG03, a balanced NADH oxidation pathway was established for homobutanol fermentation (glucose => 4 NADH + 2 acetyl-CoA => butanol). This strain was able to convert glucose to butanol (1,254 mg l(-1)) under anaerobic condition.     

过量表达异柠檬酸裂解酶对ldh-1谷氨酸棒状杆菌产丁二酸的影响

谷氨酸棒状杆菌SA001是缺失了乳酸脱氢酶基因 (ldhA) 的菌株。为了增加厌氧条件下经异柠檬酸到丁二酸的代谢通量,以提高丁二酸的产量。将来自大肠杆菌Escherichia coli K12的异柠檬酸裂解酶基因导入谷氨酸棒状杆菌SA001 (SA001/pXMJ19-aceA) 中。该菌经0.8 mmol/L的IPTG有氧诱导12 h后,转入厌氧发酵16 h,丁二酸的产量为10.38 g/L,丁二酸的生产强度为0.83 g/(L·h)。与出发菌株比较,异柠檬酸裂解酶的酶活提高了5.8倍,丁二酸的产量提高了48%。结果表明过量表达异柠檬酸裂解酶可以增加由乙醛酸途径流向丁二酸的代谢流。     

Engineering Escherichia coli to improve culture performance and reduce formation of by-products during recombinant protein production under transient intermittent anaerobic conditions

Three E. coli strains, named VAL22, VAL23, and VAL24, were engineered at the level of mixed-acid fermentation pathways to improve culture performance under transient anaerobic conditions. VAL22 is a single mutant with an inactivated poxB gene that codes for pyruvate oxidase which converts pyruvate to acetate. VAL23 is a double mutant unable to produce lactate and formate due to deletions of the ldhA and pflB genes that code for lactate dehydrogenase and pyruvate-formate lyase, respectively. VAL24 is a triple mutant with ldhA and pflB deleted and poxB inactivated. Engineered strains were cultured under oscillating dissolved oxygen tension (DOT) in a scale-down system, to simulate gradients occurring in large-scale bioreactors. Kinetic and stoichiometric parameters of constant (10%) and oscillating DOT cultures of the engineered strains were compared with those of the parental strain, W3110. All strains expressed recombinant green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a protein model. Mutant strains showed improved specific growth rate, reduced by-product formation, and reduced specific glucose uptake rate compared to the parental strain, when cultured under oscillating DOT. In particular, lactate and formate production was abolished and acetate accumulation was reduced by 9-12%s. VAL24 showed the best performance, as specific growth and GFP production rates, and maximum GFP concentration were not affected by DOT gradients and were at least twofold higher than those of W3110 under constant DOT. Under oscillating DOT, VAL24 wasted about 40% less carbon into fermentation by-products than W3110. It was demonstrated that, although E. coli responds rapidly to DOT fluctuations by deviating to fermentative metabolism, such pathways can be eliminated as they are not necessary for bacterial survival during the short circulation times typical of large-scale cultures. The approach shown here opens new possibilities for designing metabolically engineered strains, with reduced sensitivity to DOT gradients and improved performance under typical conditions of large-scale cultures.     

Redistribution of metabolic fluxes in Escherichia coli with fermentative lactate dehydrogenase overexpression and deletion

Under anaerobic conditions, competition for pyruvate between the branch point enzymes pyruvate formate lyase (PFL, Km = 2 mM) and fermentative lactate dehydrogenase (LDH, Km = 7.2 mM) determines the partition of carbon flux. Two Escherichia coli mutant strains, one deficient in ackA, pta, and ldhA and the other overexpressing LDH, were constructed to systematically analyze the effects of these perturbations in the existing pathways on the redistribution of carbon fluxes. Deletion of the lactate and acetate synthesis pathways was detrimental to cell growth. Carbon flux is forced through ethanol and formate production pathways, resulting in a concomitant increase in those fluxes. In addition, overexpression of LDH simultaneously increases the common flux as well as the flux to the competing acetyl-CoA branch. Overexpression of lactate dehydrogenase (ldhA) in the parent strain increases the lactate synthesis rate from 0.19 to 0.40 mmol/g-biomass-h when the LDH activities increases from 1.3 to 15.3 units. Even an increase of more than 10 times in the LDH activity fails to divert a large fraction of the carbon flux to lactate; the majority of the flux still channels through the acetyl-CoA branch. Overexpression of LDH in the parent strain simultaneously increases the common flux as well as the flux through the acetyl-CoA branch. Subsequently, the flux amplification factors (or deviation indices which can be related to the flux control coefficients) are positive for all three fluxes occurring at the pyruvate node.     

大肠杆菌副产物合成途径删除提高外源蛋白表达水平

大肠杆菌是应用最广泛的外源基因表达宿主。为探索阻断副产物产生途径对提高大肠杆菌表达外源蛋白的能力,本实验以野生型大肠杆菌菌株为基础,删除其乳酸脱氢酶基因(ldhA),磷酸烯醇式丙酮酸合成酶基因(pps)和丙酮酸甲酸裂解酶基因(pflB)。在此基础上,以甘露聚糖酶基因man为报告基因,考察阻断以上代谢途径对大肠杆菌产酶能力的影响。结果显示,以上述三个基因叠加删除的三重突变株为宿主时,重组茵产酶水平最高,比酶活达到158.3 U/mg,相比野生出发菌株提高82.3%。     

过量表达苹果酸脱氢酶对大肠杆菌NZN111产丁二酸的影响

大肠杆菌NZN111是敲除了乳酸脱氢酶的编码基因 (ldhA) 和丙酮酸-甲酸裂解酶的编码基因 (pflB) 的工程菌,厌氧条件下由于辅酶NAD(H) 的不平衡导致其丧失了代谢葡萄糖的能力。构建了苹果酸脱氢酶的重组菌大肠杆菌NZN111/pTrc99a-mdh,在厌氧摇瓶发酵过程中通过0.3 mmol/L的IPTG诱导后重组菌的苹果酸脱氢酶 (Malate dehydrogenase,MDH) 酶活较出发菌株提高了14.8倍,NADH/NAD+的比例从0.64下降到0.26,同时NAD+和NADH浓度分别     

Metabolic engineering of aerobic succinate production systems in Escherichia coli to improve process productivity and achieve the maximum theoretical succinate yield

The potential to produce succinate aerobically in Escherichia coli would offer great advantages over anaerobic fermentation in terms of faster biomass generation, carbon throughput, and product formation. Genetic manipulations were performed on two aerobic succinate production systems to increase their succinate yield and productivity. One of the aerobic succinate production systems developed earlier (Biotechnol, Bioeng., 2004, accepted) was constructed with five mutations (DeltasdhAB, Deltaicd, DeltaiclR, DeltapoxB, and Delta(ackA-pta)), which created a highly active glyoxylate cycle. In this study, a second production system was constructed with four of the five above mutations (DeltasdhAB, DeltaiclR, DeltapoxB, and Delta(ackA-pta)). This system has two routes in the aerobic central metabolism for succinate production. One is the glyoxylate cycle and the other is the oxidative branch of the TCA cycle. Inactivation of ptsG and overexpression of a mutant Sorghum pepc in these two production systems showed that the maximum theoretical succinate yield of 1.0 mol/mol glucose consumed could be achieved. Furthermore, the two-route production system with ptsG inactivation and pepc overexpression demonstrated substantially higher succinate productivity than the previous system, a level unsurpassed for aerobic succinate production. This optimized system showed remarkable potential for large-scale aerobic succinate production and process optimization.     

Eliminating side products and increasing succinate yields in engineered strains of Escherichia coli C

Derivatives of Escherichia coli C were previously described for succinate production by combining the deletion of genes that disrupt fermentation pathways for alternative products (ldhA::FRT, adhE::FRT, ackA::FRT, focA-pflB::FRT, mgsA, poxB) with growth-based selection for increased ATP production. The resulting strain, KJ073, produced 1.2 mol of succinate per mol glucose in mineral salts medium with acetate, malate, and pyruvate as significant co-products. KJ073 has been further improved by removing residual recombinase sites (FRT sites) from the chromosomal regions of gene deletion to create a strain devoid of foreign DNA, strain KJ091(DeltaldhA DeltaadhE DeltaackA DeltafocA-pflB DeltamgsA DeltapoxB). KJ091 was further engineered for improvements in succinate production. Deletion of the threonine decarboxylase (tdcD; acetate kinase homologue) and 2-ketobutyrate formate-lyase (tdcE; pyruvate formate-lyase homologue) reduced the acetate level by 50% and increased succinate yield (1.3 mol mol(-1) glucose) by almost 10% as compared to KJ091 and KJ073. Deletion of two genes involved in oxaloacetate metabolism, aspartate aminotransferase (aspC) and the NAD(+)-linked malic enzyme (sfcA) (KJ122) significantly increased succinate yield (1.5 mol mol(-1) glucose), succinate titer (700 mM), and average volumetric productivity (0.9 g L(-1) h(-1)). Residual pyruvate and acetate were substantially reduced by further deletion of pta encoding phosphotransacetylase to produce KJ134 (DeltaldhA DeltaadhE DeltafocA-pflB DeltamgsA DeltapoxB DeltatdcDE DeltacitF DeltaaspC DeltasfcA Deltapta-ackA). Strains KJ122 and KJ134 produced near theoretical yields of succinate during simple, anaerobic, batch fermentations using mineral salts medium. Both may be useful as biocatalysts for the commercial production of succinate.