Evidence of Metyrapone Reduction by two Mycobacterium strains shown by 1H NMR

In situ1H NMR monitoring ofmetyrapone incubations with resting-cellsof two strains of Mycobacterium,Mycobacterium aurum MO1 andMycobacterium sp. RP1, showed thebiotransformation of this compound,and more precisely the carbonyl-reductionof metyrapone into the correspondingalcohol, metyrapol. This reduction produced bothenantiomers. The use of inhibitorsallowed us to show the multiple enzymaticactivities involved in this biotransformationincluding carbonyl reductase (EC 1.1.1.184)from the short-chain dehydrogenasesuperfamily and aldehyde reductase(EC 1.1.1.2) from the aldo-keto reductasesuperfamily.