BACKGROUND The green microalga Dunaliella salina accumulates a high proportion of β-carotene during abiotic stress conditions. To better understand the intracellular flux distribution leading to carotenoid accumulation, this work aimed at reconstructing a carbon core metabolic network for D. salina CCAP 19/18 based on the recently published nuclear genome and its validation with experimental observations and literature data. RESULTS The reconstruction resulted in a network model with 221 reactions and 212 metabolites within three compartments: cytosol, chloroplast and mitochondrion. The network was implemented in the MATLAB toolbox CellNetAnalyzer and checked for feasibility. Furthermore, a flux balance analysis was carried out for different light and nutrient uptake rates. The comparison of the experimental knowledge with the model prediction revealed that the results of the stoichiometric network analysis are plausible and in good agreement with the observed behavior. Accordingly, our model provides an excellent tool for investigating the carbon core metabolism of D. salina. CONCLUSIONS The reconstructed metabolic network of D. salina presented in this work is able to predict the biological behavior under light and nutrient stress and will lead to an improved process understanding for the optimized production of high-value products in microalgae.

中文翻译：

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杜氏盐藻碳核代谢网络的重建和分析。

背景技术绿色的微藻杜氏盐藻在非生物胁迫条件下积累了大量的β-胡萝卜素。为了更好地了解导致类胡萝卜素积累的细胞内通量分布，这项工作旨在基于最近发表的核基因组及其实验观察和文献数据验证，为D. salina CCAP 19/18构建碳核代谢网络。结果重建建立了一个网络模型，在三个部分：细胞溶质，叶绿体和线粒体中具有221个反应和212个代谢物。该网络是在MATLAB工具箱CellNetAnalyzer中实现的，并检查了可行性。此外，针对不同的光和养分吸收率进行了通量平衡分析。实验知识与模型预测的比较表明，化学计量网络分析的结果是合理的，并且与观察到的行为非常吻合。因此，我们的模型为研究盐藻的碳核代谢提供了一个极好的工具。结论这项工作中提出的盐藻的重组代谢网络能够预测在轻度和营养胁迫下的生物学行为，并将促进对微藻中高价值产品的优化生产的过程理解。