Abstract:Mitochondria are important places where citric acid cycle, glyoxylate cycle and respiratory chain reactions occur, and they also the indispensable organelles of eukaryotes. The exchange of substances between mitochondria and cytoplasm directly affects the catabolism and anabolism of cells, while the inner mitochondrial membrane is highly selective and impermeable. Therefore, the exchange of substances needs to be assisted by substrate channels or carrier proteins on the mitochondrial membrane. This review summarizes the mitochondrial carrier and metabolic substrate channels in the exchange of metabolites between mitochondria and cytoplasm and other organelles, including carbon metabolites mitochondrial carrier proteins, NAD(P)H and NAD(P)+ metabolites mitochondrial substrates channel, cofactor carrier protein, amino acid carrier protein, and several other mitochondrial carrier and substrate channels that have been identified. At the same time, the application of mitochondrial membrane carrier protein engineering in microbial metabolic transformation is summarized as well. In addition, the elucidation of metabolite transport mechanisms across organelle membranes in this review will pave the way for mitochondrial carrier protein engineering in designing new metabolic pathways and remodeling intracellular metabolic networks, which deepens our understanding of intracellular metabolism and makes us better design the microbial cell factories.
