Microbial metabolism of C1 and C2 compounds. The role of glyoxylate, glycollate and acetate in the growth of Pseudomonas AM1 on ethanol and on C1 compounds

Succinate (or a product of succinate metabolism) is a catabolite repressor of some enzymes of the serine pathway (hydroxypyruvate reductase, serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase and glycerate kinase) but not of methanol dehydrogenase nor methylamine dehydrogenase. A mutant (PCT64) of Pseudomonas AM1, which is unable to grow on C(1) compounds, lacks glycerate kinase, showing that this enzyme is essential for the operation of the serine pathway. Mutant PCT48, unable to convert acetate into glycollate, has lost the ability to grow both on C(1) compounds and on ethanol. The properties of a third mutant (PCT57) show that Pseudomonas AM1 contains enzymes catalysing the conversion of acetate into glyoxylate. Evidence is presented that hydroxypyruvate reductase is involved in the oxidation of glycollate to glyoxylate during growth on ethanol. A scheme is proposed for the conversion of ethanol and of C(1) compounds into glyoxylate in which acetate (or a derivative) and glycollate are intermediates.     

Aspects of glycine and serine biosynthesis during growth of Pseudomonas AM1 on C1 compounds

1. Methanol or formate can replace serine or glycine as supplements for growth on succinate of the auxotrophic mutants 20S and 82G of Pseudomonas AM1, showing that the organism can synthesize glycine and serine in net fashion from C(1) units. 2. Double mutants of Pseudomonas 20S and 82G have been prepared (20ST-1 and 82GT-1) that are unable to grow on succinate+1mm-glyoxylate, succinate+2mm-methanol or methanol alone. 3. Mutants 20ST-1 and 82GT-1 lacked serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase activity, and revertants to the phenotype of 20S and 82G regained serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase activity. A total revertant of 82GT-1 to wild-type phenotype regained activities of serine hydroxymethyltransferase and serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase. 4. The activity of serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase in methanol-grown Pseudomonas AM1 is eightfold higher than in the succinate-grown organism. 5. The combined results show that in Pseudomonas AM1 serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase is necessary for growth on C(1) compounds and is involved in the conversion of methanol into glycine via glyoxylate. 6. It is suggested that the phosphorylated pathway of serine biosynthesis from phosphoglycerate replenishes the supply of alpha-amino groups necessary for the flow of glyoxylate through the main assimilatory pathway during growth on C(1) compounds.     

Methanol dissimilation in Xanthobacter H4-14: activities, induction and comparison to Pseudomonas AM1 and Paracoccus denitrificans

Methanol dissimilatory enzymes detected in the methanol autotroph Xanthobacter H4-14 were a typical phenazine methosulphate-linked methanol dehydrogenase, a NAD+-linked formate dehydrogenase, and a dye-linked formaldehyde dehydrogenase that could be assayed only by activity stains of polyacrylamide gels. This same methanol dehydrogenase activity was found in ethanol-grown cells and was apparently utilized for ethanol oxidation. Formaldehyde dehydrogenase activities were investigated in Paracoccus denitrificans, Xanthobacter H4-14, and Pseudomonas AM1. P. denitrificans contained a previously reported NAD+-linked, GSH-dependent activity, but both Xanthobacter H4-14 and Pseudomonas AM1 contained numerous activities detected by activity stains of polyacrylamide gels. Induction studies showed that in Xanthobacter H4-14, a 10 kDal polypeptide, probably a dehydrogenase-associated cytochrome c, was co-induced with methanol dehydrogenase, but the formaldehyde and formate dehydrogenases were not co-regulated. Analogous induction experiments revealed similar patterns in P. denitrificans, but no evidence for co-regulation of dissimilatory activities in Pseudomonas AM1.     

The biosynthesis of serine and glycine in Pseudomonas AM1 with special reference to growth on carbon sources other than C1 compounds

1. A mutant, 20S, of Pseudomonas AM1 was obtained that requires a supplement of serine to grow on succinate, lactate or ethanol. This mutant lacks phosphoserine phosphatase and revertants to wild-type phenotype regained this enzymic activity showing that the phosphorylated pathway of serine biosynthesis is necessary for growth on these three substrates. 2. The requirement for supplemental serine by mutant 20S could be met by glycine, suggesting that Pseudomonas AM1 can obtain C(1) units from glycine. 3. Mutant 20S grows on C(1) compounds at a lower rate compared with the wild type. Supplementation with serine stimulated the growth rate of the mutant suggesting that the phosphorylated pathway of serine biosynthesis plays some role, but not an essential role, during growth on C(1) compounds. 4. A mutant, 82G, was obtained that requires a supplement of glycine to grow on succinate, lactate or ethanol. When grown in such supplemented media, the mutant lacks serine hydroxymethyltransferase and revertants to wild-type phenotype regained enzymic activity showing that during growth on succinate, lactate or ethanol, glycine is made from serine via serine hydroxymethyltransferase, and that the organism can obtain C(1) units from glycine. 5. Mutant 82G grew on methanol and then contained serine hydroxymethyltransferase suggesting that this enzyme is necessary for growth on C(1) compounds and that Pseudomonas AM1 may synthesize two such enzymes, one used in growth on C(1) compounds, the other used in growth on other substrates. Mutant 82G might lack the latter enzyme. 6. Phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase is specifically inhibited by l-serine and the regulatory implications of this are discussed.     

Acetyl-CoA production and utilization during growth of the facultative methylotroph Pseudomonas AM1 on ethanol, malonate and 3-hydroxybutyrate.

In Pseudomonas AM1, conversion of 3-hydroxybutyrate to acetyl-CoA is mediated by an inducible 3-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase, an acetoacetate: succinate coenzyme A transferase (specific for succinyl-CoA) and an inducible beta-ketothiolase. Ethanol is oxidized to acetate by the same enzymes as are involved in methanol oxidation to formate. An inducible acetyl-CoA synthetase has been partially purified and characterized; it is essential for growth only on ethanol, malonate and acetate plus glyoxylate, as shown by the growth characteristics of a mutant (ICT54) lacking this enzyme. Free acetate is not involved in the assimilation of acetyl-CoA, and hydroxypyruvate reductase is not involved in the oxidation of acetyl-CoA to glyoxylate during growth on 3-hydroxybutyrate. A mutant (ICT51), lacking 'malate synthase' activity has been isolated and its characteristics indicate that this activity is normally essential for growth, of Pseudomonas AM1 on ethanol, malonate and 3-hydroxybutyrate, but not for growth on other substrates such as pyruvate, succinate and C1 compounds. The growth properties of a revertant (ICT51R) and of a mutant lacking malyl-CoA lyase (PCT57) indicate that an alternative route must exist for assimilation of compounds metabolized exclusively by way of acetyl-CoA.     

Microbial Oxidation of Methane and Methanol: Isolation of Methane-Utilizing Bacteria and Characterization of a Facultative Methane-Utilizing Isolate

A methane-utilizing organism capable of growth both on methane and on more complex organic substrates as a sole source of carbon and energy, has been isolated and studied in detail. Suspensions of methane-grown cells of this organism oxidized C-1 compounds (methane, methanol, formaldehyde, formate); hydrocarbons (ethane, propane); primary alcohols (ethanol, propanol); primary aldehydes (acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde); alkenes (ethylene, propylene); dimethylether; and organic acids (acetate, malate, succinate, isocitrate). Suspensions of methanol-or succinate-grown cells did not oxidize methane, ethane, propane, ethylene, propylene, or dimethylether, suggesting that the enzymatic systems required for oxidation of these substrates are induced only during growth on methane. Extracts of methane-grown cells contained a particulate reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-dependent methane monooxygenase activity. Oxidation of methanol, formaldehyde, and primary alcohols was catalyzed by a phenazine methosulfate-linked, ammonium ion-requiring methanol dehydrogenase. Oxidation of primary aldehydes was catalyzed by a phenazine methosulfate-linked, ammonium ion-independent aldehyde dehydrogenase. Formate was oxidized by a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-specific formate dehydrogenase. Extracts of methane-grown, but not succinate-grown, cells contained the key enzymes of the serine pathway, hydroxypyruvate reductase and malate lyase, indicating that the enzymes of C-1 assimilation are induced only during growth on C-1 compounds. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase was induced during growth on glucose. Extracts of methane-grown cells contained low levels of enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, including alpha-keto glutarate dehydrogenase, relative to the levels found during growth on succinate.     

Microbial growth on oxalate by a route not involving glyoxylate carboligase

1. The metabolism of oxalate by the pink-pigmented organisms, Pseudomonas AM1, Pseudomonas AM2, Protaminobacter ruber and Pseudomonas extorquens has been compared with that of the non-pigmented Pseudomonas oxalaticus. 2. During growth on oxalate, all the organisms contain oxalyl-CoA decarboxylase, formate dehydrogenase and oxalyl-CoA reductase. This is consistent with oxidation of oxalate to carbon dioxide taking place via oxalyl-CoA, formyl-CoA and formate as intermediates, and also reduction of oxalate to glyoxylate taking place via oxalyl-CoA. 3. The pink-pigmented organisms, when grown on oxalate, contain l-serine–glyoxylate aminotransferase and hydroxypyruvate reductase but do not contain glyoxylate carboligase. The converse of this obtains in oxalate-grown Ps. oxalaticus. This indicates that, in contrast with Ps. oxalaticus, synthesis of C₃ compounds from oxalate by the pink-pigmented organisms occurs by a variant of the `serine pathway' used by Pseudomonas AM1 during growth on C₁ compounds. 4. Evidence in favour of this scheme is provided by the finding that a mutant of Pseudomonas AM1 that lacks hydroxypyruvate reductase is not able to grow on oxalate.     

Cloning, mutagenesis, and physiological effect of a hydroxypyruvate reductase gene from Methylobacterium extorquens AM1.

The gene encoding the serine cycle hydroxypyruvate reductase of Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 was isolated by using a synthetic oligonucleotide with a sequence based on a known N-terminal amino acid sequence. The cloned gene was inactivated by insertion of a kanamycin resistance gene, and recombination of this insertion derivative with the wild-type gene produced a serine cycle hydroxypyruvate reductase null mutant. This mutant had lost its ability to grow on C-1 compounds but retained the ability to grow on C-2 compounds, showing that the hydroxypyruvate reductase operating in the serine cycle is not involved in the conversion of acetyl coenzyme A to glycine as previously proposed. A second hydroxypyruvate-reducing enzyme with a low level of activity was found in M. extorquens AM1; this enzyme was able to interconvert glyoxylate and glycollate. The gene encoding hydroxypyruvate reductase was shown to be located about 3 kb upstream of two other serine cycles genes encoding phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and malyl coenzyme A lyase.     

Purification and properties of an amine dehydrogenase from Pseudomonas AM1 and its role in growth on methylamine

1. Whole cells of Pseudomonas AM1 grown on methylamine oxidize methylamine, formaldehyde and formate. Crude extracts oxidize methylamine only if supplemented with phenazine methosulphate. 2. By using a spectrophotometric assay, the methylamine-oxidizing enzyme has been purified 20-fold in 31% yield. 3. The enzyme is a dehydrogenase, unable to utilize oxygen, NAD, NADP, flavines or menadione as electron acceptors, but able to utilize phenazine methosulphate, ferricyanide, cytochrome c or brilliant cresyl blue. 4. The enzyme is non-specific, readily oxidizing aliphatic monoamines and diamines, histamine and ethanol-amine. Secondary and tertiary amines, quaternary ammonium salts and aromatic amines are not oxidized. 5. The pH optima for methylamine, n-pentylamine and putrescine are respectively 7.6, 8.0 and 8.5. 6. The K(m) value for methylamine is 5.2mum and that for phenazine methosulphate 56mum. 7. The enzyme will withstand heating for 15min. at 80 degrees without loss of activity, but is inactivated at higher temperatures. It is not inactivated by any pH value between 2.6 and 10.6. 8. The dehydrogenase is inhibited by semicarbazide (K(i) 3.35mum), isoniazid (K(i) 1.17mum), cuprizone (K(i) 0.49mum), p-chloromercuribenzoate (K(i) 0.45mm) and quinacrine (K(i) 12.1mm). 9. The enzyme is absent from succinate-grown cells, and, during adaptation from succinate to methylamine, activity appears before growth on methylamine begins.     

Multiple formate dehydrogenase enzymes in the facultative methylotroph Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 are dispensable for growth on methanol

Formate dehydrogenase has traditionally been assumed to play an essential role in energy generation during growth on C(1) compounds. However, this assumption has not yet been experimentally tested in methylotrophic bacteria. In this study, a whole-genome analysis approach was used to identify three different formate dehydrogenase systems in the facultative methylotroph Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 whose expression is affected by either molybdenum or tungsten. A complete set of single, double, and triple mutants was generated, and their phenotypes were analyzed. The growth phenotypes of the mutants suggest that any one of the three formate dehydrogenases is sufficient to sustain growth of M. extorquens AM1 on formate, while surprisingly, none is required for growth on methanol or methylamine. Nuclear magnetic resonance analysis of the fate of [(13)C]methanol revealed that while cells of wild-type M. extorquens AM1 as well as cells of all the single and the double mutants continuously produced [(13)C]bicarbonate and (13)CO(2), cells of the triple mutant accumulated [(13)C]formate instead. Further studies of the triple mutant showed that formate was not produced quantitatively and was consumed later in growth. These results demonstrated that all three formate dehydrogenase systems must be inactivated in order to disrupt the formate-oxidizing capacity of the organism but that an alternative formate-consuming capacity exists in the triple mutant.     

Glycine formation during growth of Pseudomonas AM1 on methanol and succinate

1. The mechanism of regeneration of glycine during the growth of Pseudomonas AM1 on C(1) compounds has been investigated by brief incubation of bacterial suspensions with [2,3-(14)C(2)]succinate and observing the incorporation of radioactivity into various metabolites. 2. With the wild-type organism growing on methanol, radioactivity appeared rapidly in glycine and tricarboxylic acid-cycle intermediates, but there was a relatively slow labelling of serine and phosphorylated compounds. Serine became labelled predominantly in the C-2 position. 3. The proportion of radioactivity incorporated into glycine at earliest times was greatly diminished when succinate-grown cells were used. 4. Radioactivity was also incorporated from [2,3-(14)C(2)]succinate into glycine and serine by methanol-grown mutant 20S, which lacks phosphoserine phosphohydrolase. Both the glycine and serine were labelled mainly in C-2. 5. The formation of predominantly [2-(14)C]serine from [2,3-(14)C(2)]succinate in wild-type Pseudomonas AM1, and of [2-(14)C]serine and [2-(14)C]glycine in the mutant lacking the phosphorylated pathway from succinate to serine, is taken as strong evidence for a mechanism of glycine regeneration involving cleavage of a C(4) skeleton between C-2 and C-3, rather than by a direct combination of two C(1) units derived from the growth substrate. 6. The cleavage mechanism is quantitatively more significant during growth on methanol than on succinate.     

Enzymes involved in the assimilation of one-carbon units by Pseudomonas MS.

Pseudomonas MS can grow on methylamine and a number of other compounds containing C1 units as a sole source of carbon and energy. Assimilation of carbon into cell material occurs via the "serine pathway" since enzymes of this pathway are induced after growth on methylamine, but not malate or acetate. A mutant has been isolated which is unable to grow on methylamine or any other related substrate providing C1 units. This mutant is also unable to grow on acetate. Measurment of enzyme activities in cell-free extracts of wild-type cells showed that growth on methylamine caused induction of isocitrate lyase, a key enzyme in the glyoxylate cycle. The mutant organism lacks malate lyase, a key enzyme of the serine pathway, and isocitrate lyase as well. These results suggest that utilization of C1 units by Pseudomonas MS results in the net accumulation of acetate which is then assimilated into cell material via the glyoxylate cycle.     

Oxidation of organic C1 compounds byHyphomicrobium spp.

Washed cell suspensions ofHyphomicrobium spp. were able to oxidize methanol, formaldehyde and formate. This suggested that enzymes for the oxidation of these compounds were present. The pathway of the oxidation of methanol to carbon dioxide and water has been investigated using cell-free extracts. An ammonium-ion-activated, phenazine methosulphate-linked methanol dehydrogenase was detected. This enzyme has a dual substrate specificity for normal primary alcohols and formaldehyde. It has a high pH optimum for activity of 9.5. The pathway is completed by an NAD-linked formate dehydrogenase. This enzyme is inhibited by low concentrations of potassium cyanide, copper sulphate and hypophosphite.     

Growth of Pseudomonas C on C1 compounds: enzyme activites in extracts of Pseudomonas C cells grown on methanol, formaldehyde, and formate as sole carbon sources.

Pseudomonas C can grow on methanol, formaldehyde, or formate as sole carbon source. It is proposed that the assimilation of carbon by Pseudomonas C grown on different C1 growth substrates proceeds via one of two metabolic pathways, the serine pathway or the allulose pathway (the ribose phosphate cycle of formaldehyde fixation). This contention is based on the distribution of two key enzymes, each of which appears to be specifically involved in one of the assimilation pathways, glycerate dehydrogenase (serine pathway) and hexose phosphate synthetase (allulose pathway). The assimilation of methanol in Pseudomonas C cells appears to occur via the allulose pathway, whereas the utilization of formaldehyde or formate in cells grown on formaldehyde or formate as sole carbon sources appears by the serine pathway. When methanol is present together with formaldehyde or formate in the growth medium, the formaldehyde or formate is utilized by the allulose pathway.     

Regulation of Enzymes Associated with C-1 Metabolism in Three Facultative Methylotrophs

The levels of the oxidation enzyme methanol dehydrogenase and the serine pathway enzymes, hydroxypyruvate reductase, glycerate kinase, serine transhydroxymethylase, serine-glyoxylate aminotransferase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, and malyl-coenzyme A lyase, were studied in cells of the facultative methylotrophs Pseudomonas AM1, Pseudomonas 3A2 and Hyphomicrobium X grown on different substrates. Induction and dilution curves for these enzymes suggest they may be regulated coordinately in Hyphomicrobium X, but not in Pseudomonas AM1 or 3A2. Glyoxylate stimulated the serine transhydroxymethylase activity in methanol-grown cells of all three organisms. A secondary alcohol dehydrogenase activity was detected at low levels in Pseudomonas AM1 and Hyphomicrobium X, but not in Pseudomonas 3A2.     

Oxalyl-coenzyme A reduction to glyoxylate is the preferred route of oxalate assimilation in Methylobacterium extorquens AM1

Oxalate catabolism is conducted by phylogenetically diverse organisms, including Methylobacterium extorquens AM1. Here, we investigate the central metabolism of this alphaproteobacterium during growth on oxalate by using proteomics, mutant characterization, and (13)C-labeling experiments. Our results confirm that energy conservation proceeds as previously described for M. extorquens AM1 and other characterized oxalotrophic bacteria via oxalyl-coenzyme A (oxalyl-CoA) decarboxylase and formyl-CoA transferase and subsequent oxidation to carbon dioxide via formate dehydrogenase. However, in contrast to other oxalate-degrading organisms, the assimilation of this carbon compound in M. extorquens AM1 occurs via the operation of a variant of the serine cycle as follows: oxalyl-CoA reduction to glyoxylate and conversion to glycine and its condensation with methylene-tetrahydrofolate derived from formate, resulting in the formation of C3 units. The recently discovered ethylmalonyl-CoA pathway operates during growth on oxalate but is nevertheless dispensable, indicating that oxalyl-CoA reductase is sufficient to provide the glyoxylate required for biosynthesis. Analysis of an oxalyl-CoA synthetase- and oxalyl-CoA-reductase-deficient double mutant revealed an alternative, although less efficient, strategy for oxalate assimilation via one-carbon intermediates. The alternative process consists of formate assimilation via the tetrahydrofolate pathway to fuel the serine cycle, and the ethylmalonyl-CoA pathway is used for glyoxylate regeneration. Our results support the notion that M. extorquens AM1 has a plastic central metabolism featuring multiple assimilation routes for C1 and C2 substrates, which may contribute to the rapid adaptation of this organism to new substrates and the eventual coconsumption of substrates under environmental conditions.     

Regulation of the formate dehydrogenase gene, FDH1, in the methylotrophic yeast Candida boidinii and growth characteristics of an FDH1-disrupted strain on methanol, methylamine, and choline.

The structural gene (FDH1) coding for NAD(+)-dependent formate dehydrogenase (FDH) was cloned from a genomic library of Candida boidinii, and the FDH1 gene was disrupted in the C. boidinii genome (fdh1 delta) by one-step gene disruption. In a batch culture experiment, although the fdh1 delta strain was still able to grow on methanol, its growth was greatly inhibited and a toxic level of formate was detected in the medium. In a methanol-limited chemostat culture at a low dilution rate (0.03 to 0.05 h[-1]), formate was not detected in the culture medium of the fdh1 delta strain; however, the fdh1 delta strain showed only one-fourth of the growth yield of the wild-type strain. Expression of FDH1 was found to be induced by choline or methylamine (used as a nitrogen source), as well as by methanol (used as a carbon source). Induction of FDH1 was not repressed in the presence of glucose when cells were grown on methylamine, choline, or formate, and expression of FDH1 was shown to be regulated at the mRNA level. Growth on methylamine or choline as a nitrogen source in a batch culture was compared between the wild type and the fdh1 delta mutant. Although the growth of the fdh1 delta mutant was impaired and the level of formate was higher in the fdh1 delta mutant than in the wild-type strain, the growth defect caused by FDH1 gene disruption was small and less severe than that caused by growth on methanol. As judged from these results, the main physiological role of FDH with all of the FDH1-inducing growth substrates seems to be detoxification of formate, and during growth on methanol, FDH seems to contribute significantly to the energy yield.     

Genetics of serine pathway enzymes in Methylobacterium extorquens AM1: phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and malyl coenzyme A lyase.

Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 is a facultative methylotrophic bacterium that uses the serine pathway for formaldehyde incorporation as its assimilation pathway during growth on one-carbon compounds. A DNA region from M. extorquens AM1 previously shown to contain genes for the serine pathway enzymes malyl coenzyme A (CoA) lyase and hydroxypyruvate reductase has been characterized in more detail. Insertion mutagenesis revealed an additional region required for growth on one-carbon compounds, and all of the insertion mutants in this region lacked activity for another serine pathway enzyme, the acetyl-CoA-independent phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) carboxylase. Expression analysis with Escherichia coli of DNA fragments that included the malyl-CoA lyase and PEP carboxylase regions identified five polypeptides, all transcribed in the same direction. Three of these polypeptides were expressed from the region necessary for the acetyl-CoA-independent PEP carboxylase, one was expressed from the region containing the malyl-CoA lyase gene, and the fifth was expressed from a region immediately downstream from the gene encoding hydroxypyruvate reductase. All six genes are transcribed in the same direction, but the transposon insertion data suggest that they are not all cotranscribed.     

A method for introduction of unmarked mutations in the genome of Paracoccus denitrificans: construction of strains with multiple mutations in the genes encoding periplasmic cytochromes c550, c551i, and c553i.

A new suicide vector, pRVS1, was constructed to facilitate the site-directed introduction of unmarked mutations in the chromosome of Paracoccus denitrificans. The vector was derived from suicide vector pGRPd1, which was equipped with the lacZ gene encoding beta-galactosidase. The reporter gene was found to be a successful screening marker for the discrimination between plasmid integrant strains and mutant strains which had lost the plasmid after homologous recombination. Suicide vectors pGRPd1 and pRVS1 were used in gene replacement techniques for the construction of mutant strains with multiple mutations in the cycA, moxG, and cycB genes encoding the periplasmic cytochromes c550, c551i, and c553i, respectively. Southern analyses of the DNA and protein analyses of the resultant single, double, and triple mutant strains confirmed the correctness of the mutations. The wild type and mutant strains were all able to grow on succinate and choline chloride. In addition, all strains grew on methylamine and displayed wild-type levels of methylamine dehydrogenase activities. cycA mutant strains, however, showed a decreased maximum specific growth rate on the methylamine substrate. The wild-type strain, cycA and cycB mutant strains, and the cycA cycB double mutant strain were able to grow on methanol and showed wild-type levels of methanol dehydrogenase activities. moxG mutant strains failed to grow on methanol and had low levels of methanol dehydrogenase activities. The maximum specific growth rate of the cycA mutant strain on methanol was comparable with that of the wild-type strain. The data indicate the involvement of the soluble cytochromes c in clearly defined electron transport routes.