Vanillate is a byproduct of saprotrophic digestion of plant lignin. We demonstrated that Cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. IU 625 (S. IU 625) is capable of utilizing vanillate as a sole carbon source when deprived of light for photosynthesis. Result indicated that S. IU 625 is capable of utilizing vanillate as a sole carbon source at 0.5 and 1.0 mM concentrations when light is not provided for photosynthesis. Using the sequences obtained from Caulobacter crescentus NA1000, analysis of potential genes for vanillate utilization has been carried out. Of the three proteins which are coded for in the vanillate utilization operon in C. crescentus, VanA, VanB, and VanR; homology from VanB has been found to two unique unidentified proteins in a related species of cyanobacteria Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942. This study was aimed at identification of the genes which compose vanillate operon in cyanobacteria to better understand potential cyanobacterial heterotrophic growth.