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Title: Dehalogenation of Chlorinated Ethenes to Ethene by a Novel Isolate, “Candidatus Dehalogenimonas etheniformans”

Journal Article · · Applied and Environmental Microbiology
ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [2];  [4]; ORCiD logo [5]; ORCiD logo [6];  [7]; ORCiD logo [8]
  1. Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Center for Environmental Biotechnology; Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States)
  2. Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Center for Environmental Biotechnology
  3. Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Center for Environmental Biotechnology; Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States); Univ. of California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)
  4. Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang (China). Inst. of Applied Ecology, Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing (China)
  5. Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
  6. Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang (China). Inst. of Applied Ecology, Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering
  7. ExxonMobil Environmental and Property Solutions Company, Spring, TX (United States)
  8. Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Center for Environmental Biotechnology; Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States); Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Dehalococcoides mccartyi strains harboring vinyl chloride (VC) reductive dehalogenase (RDase) genes are keystone bacteria for VC detoxification in groundwater aquifers, and bioremediation monitoring regimens focus on D. mccartyi biomarkers. We isolated a novel anaerobic bacterium, “Candidatus Dehalogenimonas etheniformans” strain GP, capable of respiratory dechlorination of VC to ethene. This bacterium couples formate and hydrogen (H2) oxidation to the reduction of trichloro-ethene (TCE), all dichloroethene (DCE) isomers, and VC with acetate as the carbon source. Cultures that received formate and H2 consumed the two electron donors concomitantly at similar rates. A 16S rRNA gene-targeted quantitative PCR (qPCR) assay measured growth yields of (1.2 ± 0.2) × 108 and (1.9 ± 0.2) × 108 cells per μmol of VC dechlorinated in cultures with H2 or formate as electron donor, respectively. About 1.5-fold higher cell numbers were measured with qPCR targeting cerA, a single-copy gene encoding a putative VC RDase. A VC dechlorination rate of 215 ± 40 μmol L-1 day-1 was measured at 30°C, with about 25% of this activity occurring at 15°C. Increasing NaCl concentrations progressively impacted VC dechlorination rates, and dechlorination ceased at 15 g NaCl L-1. During growth with TCE, all DCE isomers were intermediates. Tetrachloroethene was not dechlorinated and inhibited dechlorination of other chlorinated ethenes. Carbon monoxide formed and accumulated as a metabolic by-product in dechlorinating cultures and impacted reductive dechlorination activity. Finally, the isolation of a new Dehalogenimonas species able to effectively dechlorinate toxic chlorinated ethenes to benign ethene expands our understanding of the reductive dechlorination process, with implications for bioremediation and environmental monitoring.

Research Organization:
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-00OR22725
OSTI ID:
1871866
Journal Information:
Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Journal Name: Applied and Environmental Microbiology Journal Issue: 12 Vol. 88; ISSN 0099-2240
Publisher:
American Society for MicrobiologyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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