Selective Release of Menaquinone-4 from Cells of a Mutant of Flavobacterium sp. 238-7with a Detergent

Abstract

A mechanism of menaquinone (MK) production in a detergent supplemented culture, in which only MK-4 but not MK-6 was released into the culture medium, was studied. MK-4 as well as MK-6 was found in the cell membrane fraction. Migration of MK4 from the inside to the outside of cells in the extracellular production might be due to release from cells rather than active excretion. Selective release of MK-4 was found to require the envelope structure of the cell membrane.