Enzymatic Aryl-O-Methyl- 14 C Labeling of Model Lignin Monomers

Metabolism of One-Carbon Compounds by the Ruminal Acetogen Syntrophococcus sucromutans

Syntrophococcus sucromutans is the predominant species capable of O demethylation of methoxylated lignin monoaromatic derivatives in the rumen. The enzymatic characterization of this acetogen indicated that it uses the acetyl coenzyme A (Wood) pathway. Cell extracts possess all the enzymes of the tetrahydrofolate pathway, as well as carbon monoxide dehydrogenase, at levels similar to those of other acetogens using this pathway. However, formate dehydrogenase could not be detected in cell extracts, whether formate or a methoxyaromatic was used as electron acceptor for growth of the cells on cellobiose. Labeled bicarbonate, formate, [1-C] pyruvate, and chemically synthesized O-[methyl-C]vanillate were used to further investigate the catabolism of one-carbon (C(1)) compounds by using washed-cell preparations. The results were consistent with little or no contribution of formate dehydrogenase and pointed out some unique features. Conversion of formate to CO(2) was detected, but labeled formate predominantly labeled the methyl group of acetate. Labeled CO(2) readily exchanged with the carboxyl group of pyruvate but not with formate, and both labeled CO(2) and pyruvate predominantly labeled the carboxyl group of acetate. No CO(2) was formed from O demethylation of vanillate, and the acetate produced was position labeled in the methyl group. The fermentation pattern and specific activities of products indicated a complete synthesis of acetate from pyruvate and the methoxyl group of vanillate.

Biotransformations of carboxylated aromatic compounds by the acetogen Clostridium thermoaceticum: generation of growth-supportive CO2 equivalents under CO2-limited conditions

Clostridium thermoaceticum ATCC 39073 converted vanillate to catechol. Although carboxylated aromatic compounds which did not contain methoxyl groups were not by themselves growth supportive, protocatechuate and p-hydroxybenzoate (nonmethoxylated aromatic compounds) were converted to catechol and phenol, respectively, during carbon monoxide-dependent growth. Syringate is not subject to decarboxylation by C. thermoaceticum (Z. Wu, S. L. Daniel, and H. L. Drake, J. Bacteriol. 170:5705-5708, 1988), and sustained growth at the expense of syringate-derived methoxyl groups was dependent on supplemental CO2. In contrast, vanillate was growth supportive in the absence of supplemental CO2, and 14CO2 was the major 14C-labeled product during [carboxyl-14C]vanillate-dependent growth. Furthermore, the decarboxylation of protocatechuate and p-hydroxybenzoate supported methanol- and 1,2,3-trimethoxybenzene-dependent growth (CO2 is required for growth at the expense of these substrates) when supplemental CO2 was depleted from the growth medium, and the decarboxylation of protocatechuate was concomitant with improved cell yields of methanol cultures. These findings demonstrate that (i) C. thermoaceticum is competent in the decarboxylation of certain aromatic compounds and (ii) under certain conditions, decarboxylation may be integrated to the flow of carbon and energy during acetogenesis.

Anaerobic C 1 Metabolism of the O-Methyl- 14 C-Labeled Substituent of Vanillate

The O-methyl substituents of aromatic compounds constitute a C 1 growth substrate for a number of taxonomically diverse anaerobic acetogens. In this study, strain TH-001, an O-demethylating obligate anaerobe, was chosen to represent this physiological group, and the carbon flow when cells were grown on O-methyl substituents as a C 1 substrate was determined by 14 C radiotracer techniques. O -[ methyl - 14 C]vanillate (4-hydroxy-3-methoxy-benzoate) was used as the labeled C 1 substrate. The data showed that for every O-methyl carbon converted to [ 14 C]acetate, two were oxidized to 14 CO 2 . Quantitation of the carbon recovered in the two products, acetate and CO 2 , indicated that acetate was formed in part by the fixation of unlabeled CO 2 . The specific activity of 14 C in acetate was 70% of that in the O-methyl substrate, suggesting that only one carbon of acetate was derived from the O-methyl group. Thus, it is postulated that the carboxyl carbon of the product acetate is derived from CO 2 and the methyl carbon is derived from the O-methyl substituent of vanillate. The metabolism of O -[ methyl - 14 C]vanillate by strain TH-001 can be described as follows: 3 14 CH 3 OC 7 H 5 O 3 + CO 2 + 4H 2 O → 14 CH 3 COOH + 2 14 CO 2 + 10H + + 10e - + 3HOC 7 H 5 O 3 .