Fermentation shifts and metabolic reactivity during anaerobic carbon-limited growth of Klebsiella aerogenes NCTC 418 on fructose, gluconate, mannitol and pyruvate

Klebsiella aerogenes NCTC 418 was grown in chemostat culture under carbon limitation, with fructose, mannitol, gluconate or pyruvate as the growth-limiting substrates, respectively. It was found that under these conditions the carbon sources were fermented with maximal stoichiometry of ATP generation. The Y_ATP values (g cells per mol ATP generated net) were similar for mannitol- and fructose-limited cultures, but gluconate-limited cultures expressed a value that was 20% lower. From these data it was concluded that gluconate-limited cells invest 0.5 ATP in the uptake of 1 gluconate.