BIOCHEMISTRY OF THE USTILAGINALES: X. THE BIOSYNTHESIS OF USTILAGIC ACID

Abstract

The β-cellobiolipid, ustilagic acid, deposited when Ustilago zeae (PRL 119) is grown in a medium containing glucose, was prepared from 1-C14-glucose. The labelled acid was degraded to carbohydrate and fatty acid fractions. The carbohydrate was shown to be synthesized from 3-C fragments and the fatty acid from 2-C fragments. These results show that the hexose metabolism of the organism is probably the same as that suggested in the Embden–Meyerhof scheme.