Abstract
Alkanes are major constituents of crude oil. They are also present at low concentrations in diverse non-contaminated because many living organisms produce them as chemo-attractants or as protecting agents against water loss. Alkane degradation is a widespread phenomenon in nature. The numerous microorganisms, both prokaryotic and eukaryotic, capable of utilizing alkanes as a carbon and energy source, have been isolated and characterized. This review summarizes the current knowledge of how bacteria metabolize alkanes aerobically, with a particular emphasis on the oxidation of long-chain alkanes, including factors that are responsible for chemotaxis to alkanes, transport across cell membrane of alkanes, the regulation of alkane degradation gene and initial oxidation.
Highlights
Various microorganisms, including bacteria, filamentous fungi and yeasts, can degrade alkanes (van Beilen et al, 2003; Wentzel et al, 2007; Rojo, 2009)
Alcanivorax bacteria are present in non-polluted seawater in low numbers; the number of Alcanivorax can increase as a result of an oil spill, and they are believed to play an important role in the natural bioremediation of oil spills worldwide (Kasai et al, 2002; Hara et al, 2003; Harayama et al, 2004; McKew et al, 2007a,b; Yakimov et al, 2007; Wang et al, 2010a,b)
We provided the first evidence that the AlmA of the genus Alcanivorax functions as an LC-alkane hydroxylase, and found that the gene almA in both A. hongdengensis A-11-3 and A. dieselolei B-5 strains expressed at high levels to facilitate the efficient degradation of LC n-alkanes (Liu et al, 2011; Wang and Shao, 2012a)
Summary
Alkanes are major constituents of crude oil. They are present at low concentrations in diverse non-contaminated because many living organisms produce them as chemo-attractants or as protecting agents against water loss. Alkane degradation is a widespread phenomenon in nature. The numerous microorganisms, both prokaryotic and eukaryotic, capable of utilizing alkanes as a carbon and energy source, have been isolated and characterized. This review summarizes the current knowledge of how bacteria metabolize alkanes aerobically, with a particular emphasis on the oxidation of long-chain alkanes, including factors that are responsible for chemotaxis to alkanes, transport across cell membrane of alkanes, the regulation of alkane degradation gene and initial oxidation
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