Transcriptome and metabolome integration analysis reveals the effect of citric acid on cell metabolism in Aureobasidium pullulans NG

To address the issue of reduced metabolite synthesis efficiency caused by morphological adaptations of A. pullulans to varying growth environments, citric acid (CA) was added to the cultivation medium for A. pullulans NG. Our study investigated the effects of CA on cellular differentiation and metabolic processes using an integrative analysis that integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic data. The results showed that cultivation with 1.0% CA primarily induced the formation of swollen cell (SC) morphology. This specific condition significantly enhanced the antioxidant capacity of the cells, resulting in a notable reduction in intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. Additionally, substantial changes were observed in amino acid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, and lipid metabolism, involving 1060 differentially expressed genes and 121 key differentially accumulated metabolites.These findings provide valuable insights into the regulatory mechanisms of cell differentiation in A. pullulans and provide a theoretical foundation for future metabolic engineering strategies aimed at improving the industrial production and application of its metabolites. • Citric acid can regulate the cell differentiation of A. pullulans NG. • Citric acid enables A. pullulans NG to grow as swollen cells and reduces ROS levels. • Citric acid can affect the cell metabolism of A. pullulans NG.