Dr. Shiva C. Aithal, Dept. of Microbiology, Dnyanopasak College, PARBHANI shiva.aithal@rediffmail.

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Entner–Doudoroff pathway (ED pathway) A metabolic pathway for the degradation of glucose
in a wide range of bacteria (e.g. species of Acetobacter, Agrobacterium, Pseudomonas,
Rhizobium, Serratia, Xanthobacter, Xanthomonas and Zymomonas); some bacteria (e.g.
Escherichia coli) which metabolize glucose mainly via the EMBDEN–MEYERHOF–PARNAS
PATHWAY can metabolize gluconate and other aldonates via reactions of the ED pathway. The
fates of pyruvate and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (GAP) produced in the ED pathway depend on
organism and conditions. In some bacteria GAP may be converted to pyruvate via
phosphoenolpyruvate, as in the latter part of the EMP pathway in pseudomonads, GAP is
recycled (via fructose 1,6-bisphosphate, fructose 6- phosphate and glucose 6-phosphate
(GLUCONEOGENESIS) to 6-phosphogluconate (which can enter the ED pathway). Some of the
6-phosphogluconate may be diverted into the HEXOSE MONOPHOSPHATE PATHWAY. In
aerobic bacteria, pyruvate can generally be metabolized via acetyl-CoA and the TCA CYCLE. In
(fermentative) ZYMOMONAS species, pyruvate is largely decarboxylated to acetaldehyde –
which is then reduced toethanol. In addition to the (phosphorylative) pathway for glucose
metabolism, many pseudomonads can oxidize glucose directly (i.e. without phosphorylation) to
gluconate. A proportion of the resulting gluconate is taken into the cell by specific transport
systems and then phosphorylated to form 6-phosphogluconate (which can then be metabolized
via the ED pathway and/or the HMP pathway).

Dr. Shiva C. Aithal, Dept. of Microbiology, Dnyanopasak College, PARBHANI shiva.aithal@rediffmail.com