title: Accumulation of a Polyhydroxyalkanoate Containing Primarily 3-Hydroxydecanoate from Simple Carbohydrate Substrates by Pseudomonas sp. Strain NCIMB 40135.
abstract: A number of Pseudomonas species have been identified which accumulate a polyhydroxyalkanoate containing mainly 3-hydroxydecanoate monomers from sodium gluconate as the sole carbon source. One of these, Pseudomonas sp. strain NCIMB 40135, was further investigated and shown to accumulate such a polyhydroxyalkanoate from a wide range of carbon sources (C(2) to C(6)); however, when supplied with octanoic acid it produced a polyhydroxyalkanoate containing mainly 3-hydroxyoctanoate monomers. Polymer synthesis occurred in batch culture after cessation of growth due to exhaustion of nitrogen. In continuous culture under nitrogen limitation up to 16.9% (wt/wt) polyhydroxyalkanoate was synthesized from glucose as the carbon source. The monomer units are mainly of the R-(-) configuration. Nuclear magnetic resonance studies confirmed the composition of the polymer. Differential scanning calorimetry suggested that the solvent-extracted polymer contained a significant proportion of crystalline material. The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer from glucose-grown cells was 143,000.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Applied Biology and Chemistry, University of Hull, Hull HU6 7RX, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Haywood
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: D F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Ewing
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Dawes