Pyruvate and Ethanol as Electron Donors for Nitrite Reduction by Escherichia coli K12

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Abstract
Pyruvate and ethanol were both effective electron donors for nitrite reduction by E. coli K12. The pyruvate-dependent rate decreased by .apprx. 50% when either a cysG mutation, which results in loss of NADH-dependent nitrite reductase activity (EC 1.6.6.4), or a chl mutation, which results in loss of the formate-nitrite oxidoreductase activity, was introduced into the prototrophic parental strain CGSC4315. A double mutant deficient in both of these previously described activities retained only 2% of the rate of nitrite reduction of the parental strain after growth on glucose or 5% after growth on pyruvate. Apparently, any 3rd pathway for nitrite reduction contributes little to the in vivo rate of nitrite reduction by wild-type strains.