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. 1974 Sep;119(3):868–878. doi: 10.1128/jb.119.3.868-878.1974

Hydrocarbon Metabolism by Brevibacterium erythrogenes: Normal and Branched Alkanes1

M P Pirnik a, R M Atlas a,2, R Bartha a
PMCID: PMC245693  PMID: 4852318

Abstract

Branched- and straight-chain alkanes are metabolized by Brevibacterium erythrogenes by means of two distinct pathways. Normal alkanes (e.g., n-pentadecane) are degraded, after terminal oxidation, by the beta-oxidation system operational in fatty acid catabolism. Branched alkanes like pristane (2,6,10,14-tetramethylpentadecane) and 2-methylundecane are degraded as dicarboxylic acids, which also undergo beta-oxidation. Pristane-derived intermediates are observed to accumulate, with time, as a series of dicarboxylic acids. This dicarboxylic acid pathway is not observed in the presence of normal alkanes. Release of 14CO2 from [1-14C]pristane is delayed, or entirely inhibited, in the presence of n-hexadecane, whereas CO2 release from n-hexadecane remains unaffected. These results suggest an inducible dicarboxylic acid pathway for degradation of branched-chain alkanes.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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