Identification and utilization of a 1,3-propanediol oxidoreductase isoenzyme for production of 1,3-propanediol from glycerol in Klebsiella pneumoniae

In a previous study, we showed that 1,3-propanediol (1,3-PD) was still produced from glycerol by the Klebsiella pneumoniae mutant strain defective in 1,3-PD oxidoreductase (DhaT), although the production level was lower compared to the parent strain. As a potential candidate for another putative 1,3-PD oxidoreductase, we identified and characterized a homolog of Escherichia coli yqhD (88% homology in amino acid sequence), which encodes an alcohol dehydrogenase and is well known to replace the function of DhaT in E. coli. Introduction of multiple copies of the yqhD homolog restored 1,3-PD production in the mutant K. pneumoniae strain defective in DhaT. In addition, by-product formation was still eliminated in the recombinant strain due to the elimination of the glycerol oxidative pathway. An increase in NADP-dependent 1,3-PD oxidoreductase activity was observed in the recombinant strain harboring multiple copies of the yqhD homolog. The level of 1,3-PD production during batch fermentation in the recombinant strain was comparable to that of the parent strain; further engineering can generate an industrial strain producing 1,3-propanediol.