[Escherichia coli K-12 mutants assimilating adenine via a new metabolic pathway]

Two pathways of adenine utilization are only known in Escherichia coli K-12: the conversion to adenosine monophosphate by adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (apt gene) and ribosylation to adenine nucleosides by purine nucleoside phosphorylase (deoD gene). The purine auxotrophs defective in synthesis of inosine monophosphate de novo (pur) and carrying apt and deoD mutations cannot satisfy their purine requirements by exogenously supplied adenine or adenosine. We have selected spontaneously secondary-site revertants (designated adu) of pur apt deoD mutants, by plating on adenine or adenosine as the sole purine source. The adu mutations frequency was 6-10(-7). The phenotypical suppression of adenine phosphoribosyltransferase and purine nucleoside phosphorylase deficiency by adu mutations is neither the consequence of apt + or deoD + reversions nor the result of appearance in mutant cells of any activity converting adenine to adenosine monophosphate or adenosine. Adenine utilization in adu mutants is not caused by constitutive synthesis or genetic modification of the substrate specificity of adenosine deaminase (add gene). The direct deamination of adenine to give hypoxanthine in extracts of adu2 mutant has been shown. The data obtained suggest the possibility of a new adenine deaminase activity to appear in E. coli by means of single mutations.