title: A comparison of biodegradation of phenol and homologous compounds by Pseudomonas vesicularis and Staphylococcus sciuri strains.
abstract: Pseudomonas vesicularis and Staphylococcus sciuri were isolated as dominant strains from phenol-acclimated activated sludge. P. vesicularis was an efficient degrader of phenol, catechol, p-cresol, sodium benzoate and sodium salicylate in a single substrate system. Under similar conditions S. sciuri degraded only phenol and catechol from among aromatic compounds that were tested. Cell-free extracts of P. vesicularis grown on phenol (376 mg l(-1)), sodium benzoate (576 mg l(-1)) and sodium salicylate (640 mg l(-1)) showed catechol 2,3-dioxygenase activity initiating an extradiol (meta) splitting pathway. The degradative intradiol (ortho) pathway as a result of catechol 1,2-dioxygenase synthesis was induced in P. vesicularis cells grown on catechol (440 mg l(-1)) orp-cresol (432 mg l(-1)). Catechol 1,2-dioxygenase and the ortho-cleavage has been also reported in S. sciuri cells capable of degrading phenol (376 mg l(-1)) or catechol (440 mg l(-1)). In cell-free extracts of S. sciuri no meta-cleavage enzyme activity was detected. These results demonstrated that gram-positive S. sciuri strain was able to effectively metabolize some phenols as do many bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas but have a different capacity for degrading of these compounds.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Silesia Katowice, Jagiellońska 28, Poland.
authors.forename: Agnieszka
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mrozik
authors.forename: Sylwia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Labuzek
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D002396:Catechols / Q000378:metabolism; D003408:Cresols / Q000378:metabolism; D010636:Phenols / Q000378:metabolism*; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000378:metabolism*; D020160:Sodium Benzoate / Q000378:metabolism; D012980:Sodium Salicylate / Q000378:metabolism; D013210:Staphylococcus / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002396:Catechols; D003408:Cresols; D010636:Phenols; C032538:4-cresol; C034221:catechol; D020160:Sodium Benzoate; D012980:Sodium Salicylate