Ethylene is an important starting material in petroleum chemistry industry[1]. It can undergo a plethora of reaction types including polymerization, oxidation, halogenation, and hydrations. One of the most important products that is derived from ethylene is polyethylene, one of the most common plastics used commercially. In addition, ethylene is produced biologically by plants and microbes; in plants it acts as a hormone[2]. Ethylene gas is produced by two distinct mechanisms. Plants synthesize it via the aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid pathway, whereas most microorganisms produce 2-keto-4-methylthiobutyric acid as an intermediate in ethylene production[3]. Some microbes that produce it include Escherichia coli[3], Fusarium oxysporum[2], and Penicillium digitatum[4].

[1]Sakai, M., Ogawa, T., Matsuoka, M., and Fukuda, H., 1997, J Ferment Bioeng 84, 434-443.

[2] Hottiger, T. and Boller, T., 1991, Arch Microbiol 157, 18-22.

[3] Ladygina, N., Dedyukhina, E.G., and Vainshtein, M.B., 2006, Process Biochem 41, 1001-1014.

[4] Fukuda, H., Fujii, T., and Ogawa, T., 1986, Agric Biol Chem 50, 977-981.