Degradation of eugenol by a microorganism.

Degradation of eugenol as the sole carbon and energy source was studied with a newly isolated microorganism. Ferulic acid (4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid) and vanillin (4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde) were obtained as products. These are produced by oxidation and β-oxidation of the aromatic side-chain and metabolized further to form vanillic acid and protocatechuic acid. Protocatechuic acid was cleaved by “ortho” fission to form β-ketoadipate. From these results, the degradation pathway was proposed. The strain was tentatively identified as Corynebacterium sp. from the results of physiological and morphological tests.