The pathway of myo-inositol degradation in Aerobacter aerogenes. Conversion of 2-deoxy-5-keto-D-gluconic acid to glycolytic intermediates.

The product of the first two reactions in the enzymatic degradation of myo-inositol by extracts of Aerobacter aerogORBS, D-2,3-diketo-4-deoxy-epi-inositol, serves as the substrate for another enzyme also present in these extracts. The enzyme was partly purified and could be shown to catalyze, presumably after a preliminary isomerization, the hydrolytic cleavage of the inositol ring. The product of the reaction was isolated and identified by the study of its chemical and physical properties as a 4-deoxy-S-ketohexonic acid.