title: Changes in soil microbial community composition induced by cometabolism of toluene and trichloroethylene.
abstract: The effects of trichloroethylene (TCE) on microbial community composition were analyzed by reverse sample genome probing. Soil enrichments were incubated in dessicators containing an organic phase of either 1 or 10% (w/w) toluene in vacuum pump oil, delivering constant equilibrium aqueous concentrations of 16 and 143 mg/l, respectively. Increasing the equilibrium aqueous concentration of TCE from 0 to 10 mg/l led to shifts in community composition at 16, but not at 143 mg/l of toluene. In closed system co-degradation studies, TCE at an aqueous concentration of 1 mg/l was effectively degraded by toluene-degrading soil enrichments once the aqueous toluene concentration dropped below 25 mg/l. Little TCE degradation was observed at higher toluene concentrations (50-250 mg/l). The results indicate that TCE changes microbial community composition under conditions where it is being actively metabolized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4.
authors.forename: Casey
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hubert
authors.forename: Yin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Gerrit
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Voordouw
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D014050:Toluene / Q000378:metabolism*; D014241:Trichloroethylene / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014241:Trichloroethylene; D014050:Toluene