A research collaboration has discovered a new mechanism by which glucose that was captured by E. coli is then secreted from the bacterial cell as glucose-6-phosphate (G6P). This finding has significant applications for improving methods to sustainably produce useful aromatic compounds and raw materials for the medicine, food and chemical industries (among others) from biomass. The research group consisted of Associate Professor Tanaka Tsutomu of Kobe University's Graduate School of Engineering, Special Postdoctoral Researcher Fujiwara Ryosuke and Researcher Noda Shuhei et al. of RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, and Professor Umetsu Mitsuo et al. of Tohoku University's Graduate School of Engineering.