Metabolic correlation between polyol and energy-storing carbohydrate under osmotic and oxidative stress condition in Moniliella megachiliensis

Moniliella megachiliensis, the osmo-tolerant basidiomycetous yeast was found to accumulate intracellularly energy-storing carbohydrates (trehalose and glycogen) along with polyols (glycerol and erythritol) up to stationary growth phase. In trehalose-loaded cell, osmotic-stress resulted in the rapid generation of glycerol, and oxidative stress with menadione resulted in the rapid generation of erythritol. Under either of these conditions, the levels of the energy-storing carbohydrates were depleted, while little glucose uptake was observed. These results suggested that the intracellular pools of trehalose and glycogen were rapidly converted to glycerol in response to osmotic stress, and to erythritol in response to oxidative stress and altered redox balance. Expression of tps1 encoding trehalose synthetic enzymes paralleled trehalose accumulation in the cell during the culture in 2% glucose, in contrast, expression of tpp1 or tpp2 encoding trehalose-6-phosphate phosphatase was little increased under the same condition. Expression of tre (tre1/tre2) encoding trehalose hydrolase (trehalase) increased with time associated with depletion of trehalose during oxidative stress. From these results, we concluded that glycerol and erythritol, the compatible solutes in M. megachiliensis were metabolically interrelated to energy-storing carbohydrates such as trehalose or glycogen during conditions of osmotic or oxidative stress.