title: Pseudomonas oleovorans as a Source of Poly(beta-Hydroxyalkanoates) for Potential Applications as Biodegradable Polyesters.
abstract: Pseudomonas oleovorans was grown in homogeneous media containing n-alkanoic acids, from formate to decanoate, as the sole carbon sources. Formation of intracellular poly(beta-hydroxyalkanoates) was observed only for hexanoate and the higher n-alkanoic acids. The maximum isolated polymer yields were approximately 30% of the cellular dry weight with growth on either octanoate or nonanoate. In most cases, the major repeating unit in the polymer had the same chain length as the n-alkanoic acid used for growth, but units with two carbon atoms less or more than the acid used as a carbon source were also generally present in the polyesters formed. Indeed, copolymers containing as many as six different types of beta-hydroxyalkanoate units were formed. The weight average molecular weights of the poly(beta-hydroxyalkanoate) copolymers produced by P. oleovorans ranged from 90,000 to 370,000. In spite of the higher cell yields obtained with octanoate and nonanoate, the use of hexanoate and heptanoate yielded higher-molecular-weight polymers. These copolyesters represent an entirely new class of biodegradable thermoplastics.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Biochemistry and Polymer Science and Engineering, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Brandl
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Gross
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Lenz
authors.forename: R C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Fuller