Bacterial Formation of the Combined Forms of Riboflavin from Hydrocarbons

Abstract

In the course of isolation of hydrocarbon-utilizing microorganisms, a bacterium (strain No. S 5) isolated from soil was found to produce yellow pigments in the culture fluid using kerosene as a sole carbon source.
The pigments were isolated from the culture fluid and identified as the combined forms of riboflavin, falvin mononucleotide (FMN) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) from the Rf-values on paper chromatography and the absorption spectra in ultra-violet and visible regions.
A concentration of total flavin nucleotide reached 27.0 μg/ml when the organism was incubated at 30°C on a recipropal shaker (120 rpm) for 6 days in a medium consisting per liter of: 1.0g (NH₂)₂CO, 2.0g (NH₄)₂HPO₄, 3.0g K₂HPO₄, 1.0g MgSO₄•7 H₂O, 0.5g NaCl, 0.01g FeSO₄•7 H₂O, 0.1% Tween 80 (v/v), 7.0% kerosene (v/v), pH 7.2. The proportions of FMN and FAD were 47% and 53% respectively.
The flavin nucleotide-forming bacterium strain No. S 5 was identified as “Bacterium anitratum” Schaub et Hauber (1948) from the results of taxonomical studies.