Menaquinones (vitamin K2) are a family of redox-active small molecules with critical functions across all domains of life, including energy generation in bacteria and bone health in humans. The enzymes involved in menaquinone biosynthesis also have bioengineering applications and are potential antimicrobial drug targets. New insights into the essential roles of menaquinones, and their potential to cause redox-related toxicity, have highlighted the need for this pathway to be tightly controlled. Here, we provide an overview of our current understanding of the classical menaquinone biosynthesis pathway in bacteria. We also review recent discoveries on protein-level allostery and sublocalisation of membrane-bound enzymes that have provided insight into the regulation of flux through this biosynthetic pathway.

甲基萘醌（维生素 K2）是一个具有氧化还原活性的小分子家族，在生命的所有领域都具有关键功能，包括细菌产生的能量和人类的骨骼健康。参与甲基萘醌生物合成的酶也具有生物工程应用，并且是潜在的抗菌药物靶标。对甲基萘醌的重要作用及其引起氧化还原相关毒性的潜力的新见解强调了对该途径进行严格控制的必要性。在这里，我们概述了我们目前对细菌中经典甲基萘醌生物合成途径的理解。我们还回顾了最近关于膜结合酶的蛋白质水平变构和亚定位的发现，这些发现提供了对通过这种生物合成途径的通量调节的深入了解。