The decarboxylation of amino acids by Photobacterium fischeri

Abstract

D e p a r t m e n t of Biology, T'andet 6dt Unzzersity, Sashville, TennesseeUuc to tlie fact that iiivestigalive work in the field of bacterial biolnrriinescence has been largely directed toward eluciclatioii of the bioluininescent process, it is iiot surprising to fiiid tliat there has been little study of metabolic processes iiot associated with this phenomenon. This study presents part of a11 iiivestigatiori of tliese general nietabolic processes, iiaiiiely the decarboxylation of amino acids by the luminous bacterimri Pliotoliucteriicm f i s~l i e r i .~ It describes tlie decarboxylase activities of washed cell suspensions and defines the esperiiiieiital conditions under which they were determined.The excellent work on this group of enzymes by Gale and liis co-worl\-ers which has been reviewed by Gale ('46) has warraiitccl the establishment of certain generalizations in i'egard to the formation, distribution, and activities of tliese eiizynies. F o r the most p a r t the results obtained in the preseiit investigation substantiate these generalizations. Present addi ess :The dntx in this paper x e i e takeri fiom n portion of a thesis presented by the author in p i t i d fulfillment of the rrquircrnents f o r the degree of Doctor of Philosophp, Vanderbilt University, 1951. Achron~obacter fischei i is a syiiong m for this organism and is ustd frequentlp by students of bacterial bioluminescence. Actually this bacterium is listed as Bacteiium phosplro) ~.sreii.s indzgenus (Eisenberg) Chester in Bergey 's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology ( '48) ; howerer, this name does not often appear in the literatuie.