Summary
The excretion of metabolites by 48 wild-type and mutant strains belonging to various species and genera of aerobic hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria was studied. The cells were grown autotrophically and heterotrophically, and samples were analyzed by gas chromatrographic techniques. The following metabolites were identified and quantitatively determined: acetate, ethanol, malate, citrate, lactate, succinate, 2-propanol, 2-methylpropanoate, 3-methylbutanoate, cis-aconitate, acetone, 2-oxoglutarate, isocitrate, butanoate, and methanol. The excretion of the metabolites started when ammonia and oxygen became limiting. The concentrations reached a maximum, whereupon the excreted products were reconsumed.
The total concentration of the metabolites identified reached 5 g/l. Maximum concentrations were measured when mutants of Alcaligenes eutrophus lacking the ability to accumulate poly-3-hydroxybutanoate were grown on fructose, gluconate, or lactate in the fermenter under conditions of ammonia limitation and when the carbon source was present in excess.
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Vollbrecht, D., El Nawawy, M.A. & Schlegel, H.G. Excretion of metabolites by hydrogen bacteria I. Autotrophic and heterotrophic fermentations. European J. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 6, 145–155 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00504426
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00504426