S U M M A R YPseudomonas putida LP, which grows on lipoate, NH,NO, and mineral salts, converts most of the organic substrate to bisnor-lipoate (I ,2-dithiolane-3-propanoic acid) and acetyl-CoA. D-, L-, or ~~-1 i p o a t e serve equally well as carbon and sulphur sources. There was no growth on or bacterial oxidation of the chemicalIy synthesized bisnor-or tetranor-( I ,2-dithiolane-3-carboxylic acid) chain-shortened analogues, but these, as well as lipoate, could supply the sulphur needed for growth when acetate was provided as the sole source of carbon. The uptake of lipoate by the bacterium is very slow and non-inducible, while the uptake of acetate is faster than octanoate. The oxidation of octanoate is more rapid and extensive than that of lipoate. Levels of acyl-CoA synthetase are not affected by the source of carbon, but activities of isocitrate lyase and malate synthase are higher when the cells are grown in acetate, octanoate or lipoate and lower when glucose is the carbon source. The glyoxylate cycle is induced to facilitate utilization of acetyl-CoA derived from lipoate, which is also degraded to water-soluble catabolites that yield the much smaller amount of sulphur required for growth.
I N T R O D U C T I O NAlthough the principal biochemical function of lipoic (thioctic) acid in a-keto acid dehydrogenases is understood, little was known concerning the metabolic fate of this compound. An organism identified as Pseudomonasputida LP was isolated and adapted to grow in a synthetic medium, which contained 0.4 % (w/v) lipoic acid as the sole source of carbon, sulphur and energy. One major catabolite was identified as bisnor-lipoic (I ,a-dithiolane-3-propanoic) acid, indicating at least partial P-oxidation of the side chain (Shih, Wright & McCormick, I 972).We have now studied uptake, oxidation and sulphur utilization of lipoic acid and its chainshortened analogues by this lipoate-degrading pseudomonad. To ascertain the existence of pathways for P-oxidation and the glyoxylate cycle in the pseudomonad grown on lipoate, some relevant enzyme activities have also been determined.