Microbial metabolism of alkylbenzene sulphonates. The oxidation of key aromatic compounds by a Bacillus

Complete degradation of xenobiotic surfactants by consortia of aerobic microorganisms

Linear alkylbenzene sulphonates are primarily attacked via a hydroxylation of the alkyl chain from the methyl group followed by beta-oxidation. The alkyl chain is metabolized by pure cultures to give sulphophenyl carboxylates which accumulate in the medium. In mixed culture, other microorganisms are capable of degrading sulphophenyl carboxylates. Formation of ethylene glycol monosulphates as major products of alkyl ethoxy sulphates demonstrates that the ether bonds are cleaved. The bacteria involved in growing on the alkyl chain are unable to utilize the hydrophilic moiety. This hydrophilic moiety, in turn, is degraded by other microorganisms. The degradation of alkylphenol ethoxylates and highly branched alcohol ethoxylates proceeds by shortening the polyoxyethylene chain leaving the hydrophobic part of the molecule. The biodegradation of linear alcohol ethoxylates and ethoxylated fatty amines is initiated by a central cleavage or omega-oxidation. Subsequent oxidation of the alkyl chains results in the production of polyethylene glycols and secondary ethoxylated amines. Both polar moieties are metabolized by other microorganisms. Degradation of alkyltrimethylammonium salts and alkylamines is initiated by a cleavage of the Calkyl-N bond. The central fission leads to the formation of alkanals which are readily converted by beta-oxidation. The alkyl chain-utilizing bacteria are not able to degrade the methylamines. The methylamines, in turn, are subject to biodegradation by methylotrophs. The limited metabolic capacities of pure cultures of microorganisms utilizing surfactants point to the requirement of consortia to degrade surfactants completely. Complete degradation of surfactants is accomplished by mixed cultures of microorganisms constructed on the basis of synergistic and commensalistic relationships. However, degradation of a surfactant by one member of a commensalistic consortium may lead to the production of toxic or non-toxic metabolites. Waste water treatment without the build up of such metabolites can be achieved in plants operated with sludge retention times that are suitable for maintaining all microorganisms of the consortium. In contrast, in natural ecosystems the introduction of a surfactant may result in a transient formation of a metabolite.

Microbial metabolism of alkylbenzene sulphonates. Variance in enzyme complement of a Bacillus in response to growth substrate

Growth of a Bacillus species at the expense of an alkylbenzene sulphonate (ABS) synthetic detergent homologue (1-phenylundecane-p-sulphonate, 11-ABS) containing an odd number of carbon atoms in the alkyl side chain induced an enzyme complement able to biodegrade 11-ABS by alkyl side-chain oxidation, and "ortho cleavage" aromatic-ring oxidation reactions. Growth of the Bacillus at the expense of an ABS homologue containing an even number of carbon atoms in the alkyl side chain (1-phenyldodecane-p-sulphonate, 12-ABS) induced an enzyme complement able to biodegrade 12-ABS by alkyl side-chain oxidation, and "meta cleavage" aromatic-ring oxidation reactions. The results of a number of different growth and enzyme induction experiments confirm that both 11-ABS and 12-ABS are initially biodegraded by an identical complement of enzymes catalysing the alkyl-side-chain oxidation reactions, but that the subsequent metabolism of the aromatic moieties remaining after the removal of the alkyl side chain from 11-ABS and 12-ABS occurs by two separate pathways requiring the de novo induction of different substrate-specific enzyme complements. The detection of the predicted changes in enzyme complement subsequent to changes in the growth substrate of the Bacillus provide confirmation of the biodegradation pathways operating in the microorganism.

Degradation of 3-hydroxybenzoate by bacteria of the genus Bacillus

The pathway whereby certain bacterial strains of the genus Bacillus degrade m-hydroxybenzoate is delineated. Of 12 strains examined, nine were tentatively classified as representatives of the species Bacillus brevis, two of Bacillus sphaericus and one of Bacillus megaterium. All strains degraded m-hydroxybenzoate via the same pathway. m-Hydroxybenzoate was hydroxylated to 2,5-dihydroxybenzoate (gentisate), which was oxidized by a gentisate 1,2-deoxygenase yielding maleylpyruvate. Maleylpyruvate was hydrolyzed without prior cis, cis to cis, trans isomerization yielding pyruvate and maleic acid. Numerous soils were examined by plate-count procedures and found to contain 10(4) to 10(6) aerobic sporeformers able to grow on m-hydroxybenzoate per g of dry soil.