Metabolism of Phenoxyalkyl Carboxylic Acids by a Flavobacterium Species

Macrae, I. C. (Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y.), and M. Alexander. Metabolism of phenoxyalkyl carboxylic acids by a Flavobacterium species. J. Bacteriol. 86:1231-1235. 1963.-A Flavobacterium sp. isolated from soil and grown in media containing 4-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy) butyric acid metabolized omega-linked 2,4-dichlorophenoxyalkyl carboxylic acids in the series from 3-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)propionic acid through 11-(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)undecanoic acid rapidly and without a preliminary induction phase. There was no detectable oxidation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid. Phenols and the fatty acids corresponding to the aliphatic side chains were liberated during the decomposition of the dichlorophenoxy alkanoates from propionate to octanoate. The data indicate that the initial step in the degradation of omega-linked 2,4-dichlorophenoxyalkyl carboxylic acids by the bacterium involves a cleavage of the ether linkage, a new mechanism for the microbial metabolism of these compounds.