Elucidating the Nicotinic Acid Degradation Pathway in Bacillus niacini

Abstract

As byproducts of oil, tar and wood processing, and common elements of herbicides, pesticides and pharmaceuticals, N‐heteroaromatic compounds are pervasive in the environment and in many cases pose toxicological threats. Bacteria have evolved to degrade this class of compound and the pathway for nicotinic acid degradation serves as a model for better understanding the mechanistic principles involved. Recently a novel gene cluster hypothesized to be responsible for the aerobic catabolism of nicotinic acid by the common soil bacterium, Bacillus niacini, was predicted. The focus of this current study is to experimentally examine that hypothesis. Of the first seven genes in cluster, six have been cloned, and the resulting protein products have been expressed and purified to homogeneity. Further, kinetic analyses of the resulting enzymes will be performed using HPLC and tandem LC‐MS/MS to determine the chemical structures of the degradation intermediates and to properly annotate the function of the genes in the cluster. This work is funded by Clare Boothe Luce and Henry J. Copeland funds for student research and Independent Study at the College of Wooster.