AUTHOR=Zhao Xuefang , Liang Qi , Song Xuemei , Zhang Yan 

TITLE=Whole genome sequence of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum MC5 and comparative analysis of eps gene clusters

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=14

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2023.1146566

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2023.1146566

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Introduction</title><p>Probiotic <italic>Lactiplantibacillus plantarum</italic> MC5 produces large amounts of exopolysaccharides (EPS), and its use as a compound fermentor can greatly improve the quality of fermented milk.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>To gain insight into the genomic characteristics of probiotic MC5 and reveal the relationship between its EPS biosynthetic phenotype and genotype, we analyzed the carbohydrate metabolic capacity, nucleotide sugar formation pathways, and EPS biosynthesis-related gene clusters of strain MC5 based on its whole genome sequence. Finally, we performed validation tests on the monosaccharides and disaccharides that strain MC5 may metabolize.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Genomic analysis showed that MC5 has seven nucleotide sugar biosynthesis pathways and 11 sugar-specific phosphate transport systems, suggesting that the strain can metabolize mannose, fructose, sucrose, cellobiose, glucose, lactose, and galactose. Validation results showed that strain MC5 can metabolize these seven sugars and produce significant amounts of EPS (&gt; 250 mg/L). In addition, strain MC5 possesses two typical <italic>eps</italic> biosynthesis gene clusters, which include the conserved genes <italic>epsABCDE</italic>, <italic>wzx</italic>, and <italic>wzy</italic>, six key genes for polysaccharide biosynthesis, and one MC5-specific <italic>epsG</italic> gene.</p></sec><sec><title>Discussion</title><p>These insights into the mechanism of EPS-MC5 biosynthesis can be used to promote the production of EPS through genetic engineering.</p></sec>