Mannitol catabolism by Staphylococcus aureus

In Staphylococcus aureus strain 233, mannitol is oxidized rapidly by d-mannitol-, sorbitol-, and d-arabitol-grown cells; it is not oxidized by cells grown in broths containing glucose, succinate, or no added carbohydrate. Neither sorbitol nor arabitol are oxidized by staphylococci, but these sugar alcohols induce high rates of mannitol uptake. Noninduced cells and sucrose-grown cells take up mannitol slowly, but uptake is repressed in glucose-, fructose-, mannose-, and glycerol-grown cells. Although no direct oxidation or phosphorylation of mannitol was demonstrable with cell-free extracts of induced cells, a nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-linked dehydrogenase was found which was specific for mannitol-1-phosphate. The enzyme was also present in extracts of noninduced cells but at much lower levels. These results suggest that mannitol-1-phosphate is an intermediate in the catabolism of mannitol by staphylococci. Nineteen mannitol-negative mutants of strain 233 were studied, and specific enzymatic and/or genetic defects are suggested for each.