Abstract
The anaerobic degradation ofm-cresol was studied in a denitrifying bacterium. In the initial studies, hypothetical intermediates ofm-cresol degradation were tested in growth experiments and in adaptation studies with dense cell suspensions. Results suggested a degradation ofm-cresol via 3-hydroxybenzoate. To verify this, the degradation ofm-cresol was followed in concentrated cell suspensions in the presence of metabolic inhibitors. Fluoroacetate treatment resulted in the transient accumulation of substantial amounts of 3-hydroxybenzoate. In the presence of iodoacetamide, not only was 3-hydroxybenzoate transiently formed, but benzoate was also accumulated. These findings support a degradation ofm-cresol via initial anaerobic methyl oxidation to 3-hydroxybenzoate, followed by reductive dehydroxylation to benzoate or benzoyl-CoA. Studies with extracts ofm-cresol-grown cells showed the presence of several enzyme activities to be postulated for this pathway. No evidence was found for a carboxylation, hydroxylation of the aromatic ring, or direct ring reduction as the initial step inm-cresol metabolism.
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Bonting, C.F.C., Schneider, S., Schmidtberg, G. et al. Anaerobic degradation ofm-cresol via methyl oxidation to 3-hydroxybenzoate by a denitrifying bacterium. Arch. Microbiol. 164, 63–69 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02568736
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02568736