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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2002, p. 1914-1918, Vol. 68, No. 4
0099-2240/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.68.4.1914-1918.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Physiological Function of Alcohol Dehydrogenases and Long-Chain (C30) Fatty Acids in Alcohol Tolerance of Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus

D. S. Burdette, S.-H. Jung, G.-J. Shen, R. I. Hollingsworth, and J. G. Zeikus*

Departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824-1319

Received 12 July 2001/ Accepted 20 January 2002

A mutant strain (39E H8) of Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus that displayed high (8% [vol/vol]) ethanol tolerance for growth was developed and characterized in comparison to the wild-type strain (39E), which lacks alcohol tolerance (<1.5% [vol/vol]). The mutant strain, unlike the wild type, lacked primary alcohol dehydrogenase and was able to increase the percentage of transmembrane fatty acids (i.e., long-chain C30 fatty acids) in response to increasing levels of ethanol. The data support the hypothesis that primary alcohol dehydrogenase functions primarily in ethanol consumption, whereas secondary alcohol dehydrogenase functions in ethanol production. These results suggest that improved thermophilic ethanol fermentations at high alcohol levels can be developed by altering both cell membrane composition (e.g., increasing transmembrane fatty acids) and the metabolic machinery (e.g., altering primary alcohol dehydrogenase and lactate dehydrogenase activities).

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Michigan State University, 410 Biochemistry Building, East Lansing, MI 48824-1319. Phone: (517) 353-5556. Fax: (517) 353-9334. E-mail: zeikus{at}msu.edu.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2002, p. 1914-1918, Vol. 68, No. 4
0099-2240/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.68.4.1914-1918.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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