Abstract: The present invention concerns a method for the production of a biochemical selected among lactic acid, acetol and 1,2-propanediol, comprising culturing a microorganism modified for an improved production of the biochemical selected among lactic acid, acetol and 1,2-propanediol in an appropriate culture medium and recovery of the desired biochemical which may be further purified wherein the microorganism expresses a methylglyoxal synthase (MGS) enzyme which activity is not inhibited by orthophosphate. The present invention concerns a mutant methylglyoxal synthase (MGS) comprising at least one amino acid residue in the protein sequence of the parent enzyme replaced by a different amino acid residue at the same position wherein the mutant enzyme has retained more than 50% of the methylglyoxal synthase activity of the parent enzyme and the methylglyoxal synthase activity of the mutant MGS is not inhibited by orthophosphate as compared to the parent enzyme.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a method for the production of a biochemical selected among acetol and 1,2-propanediol, 1,3-propanediol, ethylene glycol and 1,4-butanediol comprising culturing a microorganism modified for an improved production of the biochemical selected among acetol and 1,2-propanediol, 1,3-propanediol, ethylene glycol and 1,4-butanediol in an appropriate culture medium and recovery of the desired biochemical which may be further purified wherein the microorganism expresses a YqhD enzyme which catalytic efficiency toward NADPH is increased. The present invention also relates to a mutant YqhD enzyme comprising at least one amino acid residue in the protein sequence of the parent enzyme replaced by a different amino acid residue at the same position wherein the mutant enzyme has retained more than 50% of the YqhD activity of the parent enzyme and the catalytic efficiency toward NADPH of the mutant YqhD is increased as compared with the catalytic efficiency toward NADPH of the parent enzyme.