Microbial Production of Salicylic Acid from Naphthalene: Part I. Isolation of the High Yield Strain and the Flask Scale Culture

The high yield strain was isolated by the direct selection process using the naphthalene plate prepared by a new technique. The highest conversion rate of 94 weight per cent was obtained by studying the relationship among factors which affect the salicylate accumulation and degradation pattern. The almost complete conversion seems to be a result of inactivity of the salicylate oxidation enzyme until the exhaustion of naphthalene. The authors found it possible for the high-concentrated accumulation to neutralize the acidity of the accumulated salicylic acid indirectly by the addition of urea, instead of alkali or high-concentrated phosphate.