DISSIMILATION OF GLUCOSE AND GLUCONIC ACID BY PSEUDOMONAS NATRIEGENS

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Abstract
When glucose dissimilation of a marine pseudomonad Pseudomonas natriegens was studied , enzymes of both the glycolytic pathway were detected in extracts of glucose-grown cells. Enzymes of the Entner-Doudoroff pathway and phosphoketolase were not detected. Data from radiorespirometric experiments indicated that approximately 92 and 8% of glucose actually catabolized were routed via the glycolytic and the hexose monophosphate pathways, respectively. When P. natriegens was induced to utilize gluconate, it was demonstrated that gluconokinase and enzymes of the Entner-Doudoroff pathway were induced. Radiorespirometric experiments with cells under growing conditions revealed that gluconate was dissimulated predominantly (80%) via the Entner-Doudoroff pathway. This observation was in contrast to the observation that the glycolytic pathway is practically the exclusive catabolic pathway for glucose dissimilation. A minor portion of substrate gluconate was also catabolized by this organism via the hexosemonophosphate pathway. However, the pentose phosphate derived from substrate gluconate is believed not to be catabolized extensively. The important facet uncovered by these experiments was the extensive operation of the glycolytic route of glucose dissimilation. This is in contrast to other pseudomonads studied to date which have been reported to dissimilate glucose predominantly via the Entner-Doudoroff pathway and which do not utilize the glycolytic pathway.