The present invention refers to the new
Escherichia coli strains denominated JU15, JU15A, LL26 and MS04 and their derivatives that produce metabolites, particularly D-lactate, L-lactate or
ethanol, with high yield and selectivity from a wide variety of carbon sources, such as culture media with a high
xylose content (as the main
carbon source) and, in particular, media formulated with hydrolyzed vegetables, such as sugarcane
bagasse,
agave bagasse and fast-growing grasses, and a wide variety of agricultural and industrial wastes, such as whey or
forestry wastes, celluloses, grasses,
agave bagasse, paper wastes, shavings and
sawdust, shrubs and generally any material derived from lignocellulose. These strains use the production of the
metabolite of interest (especially D-lactate, L-lactate or
ethanol) as the only way of regenerating the reducing power. The invention also refers to
fermentation methods to produce these metabolites from media with a diversity of carbon sources, including glucose,
lactose or
xylose.