Open AccessBacterial utilisation of short‐chain primary alkyl sulphate esters
Author(s) -
White G.F.,
Dodgson K.S.,
Davies I.,
Matts P.J.,
Shapleigh J.P.,
Payne W.J.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.1987.tb02020.x
Subject(s) - alkyl , bacteria , chemistry , strain (injury) , primary (astronomy) , enzyme , biochemistry , organic chemistry , biology , genetics , physics , anatomy , astronomy
Bacteria isolated from soil, canal water, and sewage utilised short‐chain (C 1 –C 4 ) primary alkyl sulphate esters as sources of carbon and energy. Butyl and propyl sulphates, but not the C 1 and C 2 homologues, were degraded by a soil isolate (coryneform rod, strain B1a) which liberated SO 2− 4 stoicheiometrically from growth‐supporting esters. Cell‐extracts contained a sulphatase active towards C 3 –C 7 primary alkyl sulphates, and this enzyme was presumed responsible for initiating the degradation. A sewage isolate ( Xanthobacter sp. E5a) utilised exclusively ethyl sulphate, and a canal water isolate (strain M3C, tentatively assigned to the genus Agrobacterium ) used only methyl sulphate. Strains E5a and M3c liberated SO 2− 4 stoicheiometrically from ethyl and methyl sulphates, respectively, but efforts to detect corresponding sulphatases in cell extracts failed, suggesting that metabolism of the C 1 and C 2 esters was initiated by an alternative, possibly oxidative, step. A Hyphomicrobium strain isolated from soil grew either aerobically or as a denitrifier in methyl sulphate minimal medium.