• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.82-87
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• 1991

Xanthomonns curnpestris M12, Xunthornonas sp. M28, Acinetuhucter Iwofz GI, and Klebsiella pneumoniae L25, Pseudomonas rnaltophiliu N246 were screened to increase the ability for crude oil utilization. All of these could utilize hexadecane and octane with the exception of N246 strain for only octane biodegradation. Thus N246, M12, and M28, strains were specially examined for octane oxidation. Octane biodegradation by three strains showed the optimal conditions at $30^{\circ}C$, pH 7.0~9.0, and 0.2~0.3% octane concentration as a substrate. It was found that P. multofihila N246 and X. curnpestns M12 had plasmid and the cured plasmid from N246 strain lost octane uitilization. Therefore, it was confirmed that certain genes for octane utilization were Iocated on OCT plasmid in N246 strain. The size of OCT plasmid in N246 strain was 118 kb. The N246 strain was resistant to ampicillin.