Cell Wall Remodeling and pH Stress Coordinately Regulate Monascus Pigment Biosynthesis ThroughTranscriptional Reprogramming

Monascus pigments (MPs), natural food colorants produced by Monascus spp., have been traditionally used in China and Southeast Asia. Our prior work demonstrated that altered cell wall architecture in M. purpureus M9 significantly enhances pigment synthesis and secretion, although biosynthetic regulation under combined cell wall stress and acidic conditions remains unexplored. This study employed comparative transcriptomics to investigate coordinated regulation of MP production by pH stress and...