Within a screening for biosurfactants we could isolate various n-alkanes utilizing marine bacteria which were capable of synthesizing glycolipids. One strain was identified as Arthrobacter sp. EK 1 which produced trehalose lipids. After purification by column and thick layer chromatography the main fraction, an anionic 2,3,4,2′-trehalose tetraester, was obtained. The chain lengths of fatty acids ranged from 8 up to 14, furthermore succinate could be detected. Since the place of substitution of succinate has so far not been cited in literature, a definitive structural elucidation was carried out chemically by hydroboration and by 1H, 2 D1H, 13C and 13C - 1H correlation NMR measurements. All investigations confirmed the exact position of succinate at C2 atom of trehalose. After improvement of growth conditions the production of the trehalose tetraester increased up to 4.8 g/1 during a fermentation in a 20 1 bioreactor under nitrogen limitation.
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