Production of l-valine from metabolically engineered Corynebacterium glutamicum

l-Valine is one of the three branched-chain amino acids (valine, leucine, and isoleucine) essential for animal health and important in metabolism; therefore, it is widely added in the products of food, medicine, and feed. l-Valine is predominantly produced through microbial fermentation, and the production efficiency largely depends on the quality of microorganisms. In recent years, continuing efforts have been made in revealing the mechanisms and regulation of l-valine biosynthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum, the most utilitarian bacterium for amino acid production. Metabolic engineering based on the metabolic biosynthesis and regulation of l-valine provides an effective alternative to the traditional breeding for strain development. Industrially competitive l-valine-producing C. glutamicum strains have been constructed by genetically defined metabolic engineering. This article reviews the global metabolic and regulatory networks responsible for l-valine biosynthesis, the molecular mechanisms of regulation, and the strategies employed in C. glutamicum strain engineering.