Influence of hydrocarbons and derivatives on the polar lipid fatty acids of an Acinetobacter isolate.

The effects of hydrocarbons and hydrocarbon derivatives as growth substrates on the polar lipid fractions of an Acinetobacter isolate were studied. Tetradecane, hexadecane, and octadecane resulted in the incorporation of substantial quantities of equivalent-chain-length fatty acids into cellular lipids. Cells cultured on nonane, the only odd-numbered alkane tested, contained both odd- and even-chain fatty acids. The n-alkane dotriacontane (32 carbons), 1-chlorohexadecane, 1-chlorododecane, 1-chlorodecane, and 1-phenyldodecane yielded significant amounts of odd-chain fatty acids. A subterminal oxidative pathway is believed to account for these results. Cells grown on long-chain alcohols exhibited fatty acid profiles nearly identical to those of cells grown on the corresponding alkanes.