Recent advances in metabolic engineering for microbial production of L-tyrosine

L-Tyrosine, an important aromatic amino acid, has broad applications in food, feed, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and materials industries, with consistently growing market demand. Conventional production methods face drawbacks such as low efficiency and significant environmental impact. In contrast, microbial cell factories offer a promising alternative due to their environmental friendliness, sustainability, and controllability. This review systematically summarizes recent advances in metabolic engineering strategies for L-tyrosine production, including key enzyme overexpression and engineering, pathway optimization, and enhancement of precursor, cofactor, and transport systems. It also explores prospective research directions to address ongoing challenges such as complex metabolic networks and product inhibition, including systems biology-guided global optimization, dynamic regulation, and diversified substrate utilization. Overall, this review aims to provide a theoretical and technical foundation for advancing efficient, economical, and sustainable L-tyrosine biomanufacturing.