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Methionine biosynthesis and its regulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum: parallel pathways of transsulfuration and direct sulfhydrylation

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Abstract

There are two alternative pathways leading to methionine synthesis in microorganisms: The transsulfuration pathway involves cystathionine as the intermediate and utilizes cysteine as the sulfur source, but the direct sulfhydrylation pathway bypasses cystathionine and uses inorganic sulfur instead. While most microorganisms synthesize methionine via either one of these pathways, Corynebacterium glutamicum utilizes both pathways, which appear to be fully functional. In C. glutamicum, each pathway is catalyzed by independent enzymes and is tightly regulated by methionine. Although the physiological significance of parallel pathways remains to be elucidated, their presence suggests metabolic flexibility and efficient adaptation of the organism to its environment.

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Acknowledgements

The researchers thank Dr. Younhee Kim and Mr. Matt Witherspoon for their careful reading and constructive comments on the manuscript. This work was supported by grants from BASF Korea (to H.-S. Lee) and the Ministry of Science and Technology (via 21C Microbial Genomics and Applications Center to H.-S. Lee).

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  1. Department of Biotechnology, Korea University, Jochiwon, Choongnam 339–700, Korea

    H.-S. Lee

  2. Graduate School of Biotechnology, Korea University, Anam-Dong, Sungbuk-Ku, Seoul 136–701, Korea

    H.-S. Lee & B.-J. Hwang

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Lee, HS., Hwang, BJ. Methionine biosynthesis and its regulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum: parallel pathways of transsulfuration and direct sulfhydrylation. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 62, 459–467 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-003-1306-7

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