Recombinant microorganism for the production of useful metabolites

A recombinant microorganism characterized by:

• a) having phosphoketolase activity;
• b) (i) having a diminished or inactivated Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas pathway (EMPP) by inactivation of the gene(s) encoding phosphofructokinase or by being genetically modified so as to reduce phosphofructokinase activity as compared to a non-genetically modified microorganism;
• or
• (ii) not possessing phosphofructokinase activity;
• and
• c) (i) having a diminished or inactivated oxidative branch of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) by inactivation of the gene(s) encoding glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase or by being genetically modified so as to reduce glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity as compared to a non-genetically modified microorganism;
• or
• (ii) not possessing glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity;
• and
• d) furthermore characterized in that the activity of one or more of the enzymes selected from the group consisting of:
• formate C-acetyltransferase, classified as EC 2.3.1.54;
• acetate kinase, classified as EC 2.7.2.1
• L-lactate dehydrogenase, classified as EC 1.1.1.28
• phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, classified as EC 4.1.1.31
• phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, classified as (ATP) EC 4.1.1.49
• succinate dehydrogenase, classified as EC 1.3.99.1
• pyruvate decarboxylase, classified as EC 4.1.1.1
• acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (acetylating), classified as EC 1.2.1.10
• glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase [NAD(P)+], classified as EC 1.1.94
• acetolactate synthase, classified as EC 2.2.1.6
• methylglyoxal synthase, classified as EC 4.2.3.3
• formate hydrogenlyase, classified as EC 1.2.1.2 together with EC 1.12.1.2
• is eliminated or reduced.