[Characteristics of central metabolism in coryneform bacteria]

The enzyme apparatus of the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TAC), the pathways involving carbohydrate catabolites in the cycle, and the anaplerotic mechanisms were comparatively studied in cultures belonging to two groups of coryneform bacteria, viz. corynebacteria and rhodococci, in order to assess their potential ability for oversynthesis of primary metabolites. It has been shown that corynebacteria and rhodococci (including those producing nucleotides and amino acids) are similar in the TAC structure and the enzyme activity, but differ in the operation of the glyoxylate shunt.