BACTERIAL HYDROCARBON OXIDATION Davis
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BACTERIAL HYDROCARBON OXIDATION I. OXIDATION OF n-HEXADECANE BY A GRAM-NEGATIVE COCCuS' JAMES E. STEWART,2 3R. E. KALLIO, D. P. STEVENSON, A. C. JONES, AND D. 0. SCHISSLER Department of Bacteriology, State University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, and Shell Development Company, Emeryville, California Received for publication March 17, 1959 The pioneering work of Sohngen (1913) es- (Brown and Strawinski, 1958; Dworkin and tablished that a variety of aerobic microorganisms Foster, 1956). Many reports in the literature are capable of growing at the sole expense of indicate that fatty acids, aldehydes, or alcohols diverse paraffins. These findings have been have been recovered from cultures oxidizing extended and corroborated so often since then aliphatic paraffins (see Beerstecher, 1954, for that detailed documentation does not seem neces- complete citations). In no case, however, has a sary here, especially since the subject of microbial fatty acid (or other intermediate) been identi- hydrocarbon oxidation has been comprehensively fied which has a carbon skeleton identical to the and frequently reviewed (Beerstecher, 1954; alkane being oxidized, thus leaving in question Davis and Updegraff, 1954; ZoBell, 1950). the locus of the primary enzymatic attack on the Despite the extensive literature on the subject alkane molecule. of the mechanisms by which bacteria and other This paper summarizes preliminary findings of microorganisms attack hydrocarbons, the re- a study undertaken to investigate the mecha- actions have not been subjected to intensive nisms of microbial attack on aliphatic paraffins. experimental study. For example, an important goal in the establishment of a metabolic mecha- MATERIALS AND METHODS nism, namely, the isolation and identification A gram-negative coccus (designated as H.O.1 of an intermediate compound reasonably close during this study), with ability to utilize a wide to the substrate in terms of structure, has been variety of organic compounds for growth, was accomplished in the microbial oxidation of ali- isolated from hexadecane-mineral salts enrich- phatic hydrocarbons only three times; of these ments. The enrichments were incubated at room only one is alkane oxidation. Birch-Hirschfeld temperature on a gyratory shaker and after 7 (1932) detected the presence of acetaldehyde in days a transfer was made to fresh medium, fol- cultures of Mycobacterium lacticola growing at lowing which 6 serial transfers at 48-hr intervals the expense of acetylene. Bruyn (1954) isolated were made to flasks containing fresh mineral- and identified 1, 2-hexadecanediol in cultures of hexadecane medium. Pure cultures were ob- Candida lipolytica growing in a mineral salts- tained by streaking on mineral agar and in- hexadecene-1 medium. Finally, chemical evi- cubating in a paraffin atmosphere obtained by dence has been reported which strongly suggests adding 1.0 ml of sterile hexadecane to a circle of that methanol, formaldehyde, and formic acid filter paper previously inserted in the lid of the are produced from methane by Methanomonas petri plate. The detailed microbiological at- methanooxidans and Pseudomonas methanica tributes of all isolates from hexadecane as well as other hydrocarbon enrichments will be the ' This study was supported by a grant from the subject of a separate report. All isolates thus far Petroleum Research Fund administered by the have been gram-negative cocci. Strain H.O.1 was American Chemical Society. Grateful acknowl- chosen for study because of its profuse and edgement is hereby made to the donors of said homogenous growth on alkanes and its relatively fund. low rate. The 2 American Chemical Society, Petroleum Re- endogenous respiratory organism search Fund Predoctoral Fellow. is catalase positive and does not exhibit fat 3Present address: Technological Station, Fish- globules at any stage of growth. eries Research Board of Canada, Halifax, Nova Large scale cultures were set up with 1 L of Scotia. mineral medium in a 3-L Fernbach flask inocu- 441 442 STEWART, KALLIO, STEVENSON, JONES, AND SCHISSLER [VOL. 78 lated with 1 pexr cent of 48-hr growth of the or- gen analysis showed C = 79.48 per cent; H ganism on the s,,ame medium. Sterile hexadecane 13.28 per cent; and 0 = 7.24 per cent (by dif- was added at tble time of inoculation to provide ference). Phenolphthalein titration in ethanol a carbon source of 1 per cent (v/v). Cultures indicated that the substance was not an acid. were grown on Ea gyratory shaker at 250 rpm at The infrared spectrum of a carbon tetachloride room temperatu]re. soluti6n of the material showed ibsorption bands Titratable aciLdity, pH, and oxygen consump- at 3.42 and 3.51 p, characteristic of the C-H tion were determined by standard methods. stretch motion of -CH2-- or -OH. groups, Growth was diifficult to measure during the and at 6.83 ps characteristic of -CH,- bending course of an experiment because of the forma- motions. Additionally the material showed bands tion of stable emulsions of the hydrocarbon under at 5.74 p characteristic of carbonyl groups and the combined action of bacterial attack and con- another band at 8.53 p. The absorptivity of the stant agitation. 'The method finally adopted con- 5.74 p band was found to be 89 L per 100 g cm. sisted of transfeirring 6.5 ml of culture fluid to a In isopropyl alcohol, this band separated into pyrex centrifuge tube having a narrow tip gradu- two components of about equal intensity at 5.73 ated in hundredlths from 0.1 to 0.4 ml. Tubes p and 6.79 , a unique diignostic crcistic were centrifuged[ for 30 min at 1500 X G and of the ester structure (A. C. Jons, bed growth was reciorded as milliliters of cells per oem,. Taking the molal absorptivity of 6.5 ml. the 5.t4 band of esters (im CCl) to ble 450 L A WestinghouLse type LV mass spectrometer, per mol cm, the absorbance of the bacterial modified to have a nominal resolving power of oxidation intermediate corresponds to that of 1 in 350, with a heated inlet system was used to an ester with molecular weight equal to 500 t 50. record the mass spectra. The mass spectra were The nzwss spectrum showed a stront ion intensity scanned with coinstant ion accelerating potential at a position corresponding to a C, hydrocarbon by varying the mass analyzing field. The ion indicating the molecular weight of the material source temperatiure was about 200 C and 75 v to be.480 ± 14. The next strong intensities on ionizing electron:s were employed to generate the a descending mass scale were a set of three peaks ions. of mass to charge ratio 258, 257, and 256, and Other procedures used are outlined in Results a set of two at 225 and 224. In thse iets, those and Discussion. at 257 and 224 were much more intee.f16ma to charge ratios of these ions were Witively RESUFLT5 AND DISCUSSION identifid by the addition of an authentic sample Preliminary cibservation on earlier isolates of normal octadecane and recording of the mass szimilarj;1l1ll1al toUV TI(-0Ls.L.N111ALMAIUUIUCUVUhadl indioaf.wlUWCVthat.llULmlA1inDnir rL-vnro+AhblVWl an10t.inlm on hexadecane a marked drop in pH occurred, The intensities of the ions 258 and 225 relative the lowest values occurring about 48 hr after to those of 257 and 224, respectively, showed that inoculation. While the nature of the change in both the 257 and 224 ions contained 16 ti pH was unknown it seemed logical to assume that carbon atoms. Hence, the most probable empiri- some intermediate product of an acidic nature cal formulae of these ions would be C1HJO62+ was accumulating in the culture fluid. Accord- (257) -nad CuHn32+ (224). These data suggest ingly, 1 L of mineral-hexadecane medium was that the substance in question- wa either inoculated with one isolate (strain F IV) and CQi%HS OCI.H,, cetyl pdlmitat;a *di -of after 48 hr of incubation the cells were harvested C1..0, or possibly C.H1^(DH(OH3)O tie and the culture filtrate was evaporated under hemiacetal of cetyl aldehyde and t l reduced pressure to a volume of approximately Hoeb,the unambiutinra& ee 200 ml. The concentrated filtrate was dissolved for an* hse combined with the.ma-e 64 - in an excess of boiling ethanol, filtered, and con- metri ati cle tt te centrated. White crystals formed upon cooling; is cetyl palmitate. Incidentaly, the these were removed by filtration and recrystal- truinsowed virtually no oin the" w e lized from ethanol to a constant melting point 270 to 470, indicating that both the Alyigoup of 46 to 48 C. Elemental analysis showed that of the eisterae nomal. nitrogen and sulfur were absent. Carbon-hydro- In later identification of oters the.m sale 1959] BACTERIAL HYDROCARBON OXIDATION4443 was calibrated by the addition of an authentic Ester Forriotion Growth aLMoles /IOOML ML/65ML Titrotable sample of n-C36H74 which resulted in the reduction 55C- 0.5 of the uncertainty in the determination of the molecular weight of the intermediate from -14 440 - 04 ( mass units to ±+'y mass units. This alkane, I n-C36H74 gives a set of fragment ions of formula 330 0.3 CnH2,+1+ and CnH2n+ 34 > n > 12, all of about 220 0.2- i equal intensity. An ester, CmnH2m+lCO2CkH2k+1, has its parent peak at 3 mass units greater than 110: 0.1 Cm+k+3H2(m+k+3)+l. It has been established that the characteristic fragment ions in an ester mass spectrum are CmH2m+lCO2H2+ and CmH2m+1- CO2H+, with relative intensity approximately Figure 1. Growth and ester production of the 5/1, and CkH2k+ where this ion is of intensity gram-negative coccus H.O.1 growing on n- those of the acid moiety.