M. Parekh et al., BIDIRECTIONAL TRANSFORMATION OF AROMATIC-ALDEHYDES BY DESULFOVIBRIO-DESULFURICANS UNDER NITRATE-DISSIMILATING CONDITIONS, Letters in applied microbiology, 22(2), 1996, pp. 115-120
Desulfovibrio desulfovibrio ATCC 27774 was screened for reactivity aga
inst aromatic compounds during lactate-dependent, nitrate-dissimilatin
g growth. Only aromatic aldehydes (benzaldehyde, 2-hydroxybenzaldehyde
, 3-hydroxybenzaldehyde, 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde, vanillin, iso-vanillin
and o-vanillin) were reactive and, with the exception of 2-hydroxyben
zaldehyde, were stimulatory to lactate-dependent growth. Aromatic alde
hydes were transformed to their corresponding benzoate and benzyl alco
hol derivatives, with the ratio of benzoate-to-benzyl alcohol derivati
ves being dependent upon lactate availability. In presence of lactate,
aromatic aldehydes were primarily reduced to their corresponding benz
yl alcohol derivatives; in the absence of lactate, aromatic aldehydes
were mainly oxidized to their corresponding benzoate derivatives. In t
he absence of nitrate, 3-hydroxybenzaldehyde was neither reduced nor o
xidized. These results indicate that D. desulfuricans is competent in
the bidirectional transformation of aromatic aldehydes under nitrate-d
issimilating conditions and that the direction of transformation (i.e.
reduction or oxidation) is regulated by reductant availability.