title: Biodegradation and Rhodococcus--masters of catabolic versatility.
abstract: The genus Rhodococcus is a very diverse group of bacteria that possesses the ability to degrade a large number of organic compounds, including some of the most difficult compounds with regard to recalcitrance and toxicity. They achieve this through their capacity to acquire a remarkable range of diverse catabolic genes and their robust cellular physiology. Rhodococcus appear to have adopted a strategy of hyper-recombination associated with a large genome. Notably, they harbour large linear plasmids that contribute to their catabolic diversity by acting as 'mass storage' for a large number of catabolic genes. In addition, there is increasing evidence that multiple pathways and gene homologues are present that further increase the catabolic versatility and efficiency of Rhodococcus.
authors.affiliation: School of Biology and Biochemistry and The QUESTOR Centre, The Queen's University of Belfast, Belfast BT9 5AG, Northern Ireland, UK. m.larkin@qub.ac.uk
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Larkin
authors.forename: Leonid A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Kulakov
authors.forename: Christopher C R
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Allen
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / Q000378:metabolism; D049308:Dioxygenases / Q000378:metabolism; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000378:metabolism; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D022761:Gene Transfer, Horizontal; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D012240:Rhodococcus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D003577:Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System; D049308:Dioxygenases