Description:
One of the aerobic strategies used by microorganisms to degrade ketones is to perform the Baeyer-Villiger oxidation to form an ester, which can then be readily hydrolyzed. The metabolism of cyclic and aliphatic ketones, for example, the biodegradation of cyclohexanone ([http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1261|Donoghue et al., 1975]) and 2-tridecanone ([http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/925012|Britton et al., 1977]), has been reported. In addition, the degradation of aryl ketones, such as 4-hydroxyacetophenone ([http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11073896|Tanner et al., 2000]), can also proceed by formation of an ester by the action of a Baeyer-Villiger type of monooxygenase.