Microbial production of vitamin B5: current status and prospects.

ABSTRACT

Vitamin B5, also called D-pantothenic acid (D-PA), is a necessary micronutrient that plays an essential role in maintaining the physiological function of an organism. It is widely used in food, medicine, feed, cosmetics, and other fields. Currently, the production of D-PA in industry heavily relies on chemical processes and enzymatic catalysis. With an increasing demand on the market, replacing chemical-based production of D-PA with microbial fermentation utilizing renewable resources is necessary. In this review, the physiological role and applications of D-PA were firstly introduced, after which the biosynthesis pathways and enzymes will be summarized. Subsequently, a series of cell factory development strategies for excessive D-PA production are analyzed and discussed. Finally, the prospect of microbial production of D-PA production has been prospected.