ABSTRACT
Aromatic compounds can be degraded biologically under aerobic or anaerobic conditions. While the mechanisms of aerobic degradation have been studied thoroughly, there are only few reports on the anaerobic pathways, which differ from the aerobic processes in that oxygenase reactions, are not involved. Studies on the pathways for degradation of other benzoate derivatives have been initiated. It appears that the enormous variety of aromatic compounds is channeled into a few central intermediates, such as phenol, benzoic acid, resorcinol, or phloroglucinol. It is clear that the biochemistry and metabolic roules underlying anaerobic degradation of aromatic compounds are quite different from the aerobic metabolism. The results presented show that the anaerobic oxidation of aromatic compounds involves intermediary reduction steps, as proposed earlier. The enzymes involved catalyze reaction types which have not been encountered before in aerobic biological systems. This opens up new possibilities for the production of chemicals of commercial interest from aromatic compounds.
