Catabolite repression and pyruvate metabolism in Escherichia coli.

A study was made of the reactions involved in the cellular regulatory function known as catabolite repression. These studies employed the glucose-repressible, beta-galactosidase system of Escherichia coli and involved an investigation of glucose dissimilation under cultural conditions capable of permitting or preventing expression of catabolite repression. The results indicated that reactions associated with pyruvate decarboxylation are of particular importance in influencing repression. This conclusion was based on results obtained by measurement of differential rates of C(14)O(2) evolution from specifically labeled (14)C-glucose substrates, and by measurements of H(2) evolution during anaerobic growth. Catabolite repression measured in relation to steady-state growth rates indicated that the repression mechanism may in fact be a direct consequence of a cell's energy balance, as dictated by the production from pyruvate of "high-energy" molecules such as adenosine triphosphate or acetyl-coenzyme A. The apparent involvement of pyruvate metabolism in both the energetics and the expression of catabolite repression in E. coli is consistent with this view.