title: Sublethal detergent concentrations increase metabolization of recalcitrant polyphosphonates by the cyanobacterium Spirulina platensis.
abstract: As a consequence of increasing industrial applications, thousand tons of polyphosphonates are introduced every year into the environment. The inherent stability of the C-P bond results in a prolonged half-life. Moreover, low uptake rates limit further their microbial metabolization. To assess whether low detergent concentrations were able to increase polyphosphonate utilization by the cyanobacterium Spirulina platensis, tolerance limits to the exposure to various detergents were determined by measuring the growth rate in the presence of graded levels below the critical micellar concentration. Then, the amount of hexamethylenediamine-N,N,N',N'-tetrakis(methylphosphonic acid) that is metabolized in the absence or in the presence of sublethal detergent concentrations was quantified by (31)P NMR analysis on either P-starved or P-fed cyanobacterial cultures. The strain tolerated the presence of detergents in the order: nonionic > anionic > cationic. When added to the culture medium at the highest concentrations showing no detrimental effects upon cell viability, detergents either improved or decreased polyphosphonate utilization, the anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate being the most beneficial. Metabolization was not lower in P-fed cells--a result that strengthens the possibility of using, in the future, this strain for bioremediation purposes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Life Science & Biotechnology, University of Ferrara, via L. Borsari 46, 44100 Ferrara, Italy. flg@unife.it
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Forlani
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bertazzini
authors.forename: Samuele
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Giberti
authors.forename: Dorota
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wieczorek
authors.forename: Paweł
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kafarski
authors.forename: Jacek
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lipok
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D003902:Detergents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D063065:Organophosphonates / Q000378:metabolism*; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000494:pharmacology*; D053545:Spirulina / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D003902:Detergents; D063065:Organophosphonates; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D010758:Phosphorus