Potato tubers are shown to contain a unique lipoxygenase pathway to form 9-hydroperoxy-10,12-octadecadienoic acid (9-HPODE) from linoleic acid. Here, we report the metabolic pathway of 9-HPODE in the cytosolic fraction and the characterization of enzymes involved in the conversion of metabolites. The analysis of enzymatic reaction products at pH.5 revealed the formation of 9-keto-10,12-octadecadienoic acid, 9-hydroxy-10,12-octadecadienoic acid, 9,10-epoxy-11-hydroxy-12-octadecenoic acid, 9,10,13-trihydroxy-1 I-octadecenoic acid, and 9,12,13-trihydroxy-10-octadecenoic acid. The cytosolic enzymes were separated by anion-exchange chromatography into two fractions El and E2, having molecular masses of 66 and 54 kDa, respectively. The enzyme fraction El only produced 9-keto-10,12-octadecadienoic acid, whereas E2 formed other products. The enzyme El showed higher reactivity with 13- and 9-hydroperoxide of alpha-linolenic acid than 9-HPODE, but no reaction with hydroxy fatty acids. In contrast, the enzyme E2 showed the highest reactivity with 9-HPODE, followed by hydroperoxides of a-linolenic acid and arachidonic acid. We also evaluated the antibacterial activity of hydroxy fatty acids against Erwinia carotovora T-29, a bacterium infecting potato tubers. Growth of the bacteria was suppressed more potently with 9- or 13-hydroxy fatty acids than dihydroxy or trihydroxy fatty acids, suggesting a role for the metabolites in the resistance of bacterial infection.