Open AccessVitamin K composition of anaerobic gut bacteria
Author(s) -
Fernandez Fresia,
Collins Matthew D.
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.tb02191.x
Subject(s) - veillonella , ruminococcus , fusobacterium , eubacterium , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteroides , biology , anaerobic bacteria , vitamin k2 , bacteria , actinomyces , clostridium , biochemistry , vitamin , streptococcus , feces , genetics
The menaquinone (vitamin K 2 ) composition of a wide range of obligately anaerobic bacteria was investigated using chromatographic and physicochemical techniques. Members of the genera Bifidobacterium, Butyrivibrio, Clostridium, Fusobacterium, Lachnospira, Megasphaera, Propionispira, Ruminococcus, Selenomonas, Succinovibrio and Succinomonas were found to lack menaquinones, In contrast, all species of the genera Actinomyces, Arachnia, Bacteroides, Propionibacterium, Veillonella and Wolinella examined possessed menaquinones. Considerable variation in length and degree of saturation of the C‐3 isoprenyl side‐chains of the menaquinones isolated from these taxa were evident. In addition to menaquinone, strains of Wolinella and Eubacterium lentum contained methylated menaquinones. The possible contribution of bacterial menaquinones to the total pool of vitamin K in the human gut is discussed.