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. 1980 Jul;40(1):166–168. doi: 10.1128/aem.40.1.166-168.1980

Incorporation of Specific Fatty Acid Precursors During Spore Germination and Outgrowth in Bacillus thuringiensis

Kenneth W Nickerson 1, Lee A Bulla Jr 2
PMCID: PMC291541  PMID: 16345590

Abstract

The selective incorporation of precursors specific for individual fatty acids in germinating and outgrowing spores of Bacillus thuringiensis is described. The specific precursors utilized were [14C]butyrate, -isobutyrate, -valerate, and -isovalerate, which were incorporated into even-numbered normal-chain isomers, even-numbered iso-isomers, odd-numbered normal-chain acids, and odd-numbered isohomologs, respectively. This preferential incorporation by B. thuringiensis allows the terminal carbons of specific normal and branched-chain fatty acids, contained within the cytoplasmic membrane, to be labeled with 14C and, potentially, 13C.

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Selected References

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