Secondary alcohol oxidase activity identified in genus of Pseudomonas isolated from the oil polluted soil

Since the interest for biocatalysts and their application in industry have increased significantly, enzymatic oxidation of secondary alcohols to the desired ketones is still not an issue. The aim of this study was to discover bacterium species which express enzymes with activities toward oxidation of secondary alcohols. Five species of Pseudomonas genus bacteria were isolated from the oil polluted soil. Particularly, Pseudomonas putida species have shown enhanced activity in oxidation reactions of secondary alcohols. The influence of medium components and cultivation parameters were investigated for P. putida 4 strain, which expressed enzyme with specificity only for secondary alcohols. The main finding of this study was that PVA was used as a carbon and energy source by bacteria and did not act as an inducer.