Journal of Microbiology

Structural Analysis of the fcbABC Gene Cluster Responsible for Hydrolytic Dechlorination of 4-Chlorobenzoate from pJS1 Plasmid of Comamonas sp. P08: Jeong-Soon Lee , Kyoung Lee , Jong-Ok Ka , Jong-Chan Chae , Chi-Kyung Kim; J. Microbiol. 2003;41(2):89-94.

Abstract: Bacterial strain No. P08 isolated from wastewater at the Cheongju industrial complex was found to be capable of degrading 4-chlorobenzoate under aerobic condition. P08 was identified as Comamonas sp. from its cellular fatty acid composition and 16S rDNA sequence. The fcb genes, responsible for the hydrolytic dechlorination of 4-chlorobenzoate, were cloned from the plasmid pJS1 of Comamonas sp. P08. The fcb gene cluster of comamonas sp. P08 was organized in the order fcbB-fcbA-fcbT1-fcbT2-fcbT3-fcbC. This organization of the fcb genes was very similar to that of the fcb genes carried on the chromosomal DNA of Pseudomonas sp. DJ-12. However, it differed from the fcbA-fcbB-fcbC ordering of Arthrobacter sp. SU. The nucleotide sequences of the fcbABC genes of strain P08 showed 98% and 53% identities to those of Pseudomonas sp. DJ-12 and Arthrobacter sp. SU, respectively. This suggests that the fcb genes might have been derived from Pseudomonas sp. DJ-12 to form plasmid pJS1 in Comamonas sp. P08, or that the fcb genes in strain DJ-12 were transposed from Comamonas sp. P08 plasmid.

Characteristics of Several Bacterial Isolates Capable of Degrading Chloroaliphatic Compounds via Hydrolytic Dechlorination: Ji-Sook Song , Dong-Hun Lee , Kyoung Lee , Chi-Kyung Kim; J. Microbiol. 2003;41(4):277-283.

Abstract: Haloaliphatic hydrocarbons have been widely used as solvents and ingredients of pesticides and herbicides. However, when these compounds contaminate the environment, they can be very hazardous to animals and humans because of their potential toxicity and carcinogenicity. Therefore, lots of studies have been made for microbial degradation of those pollutant chemicals. In this study, 11 bacterial strains capable of degrading 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCA), 2-chloropropionic acid (2-CPA), 2,3-dichloropropionic acid (2,3-DCPA), and 2-monochloroacetic acid (2-MCA) by hydrolytic dechlorination under aerobic conditions were isolated from wastewaters and rice paddy soil samples. Their morphological and biochemical characteristics and their degradation capabilities of haloaliphatic hydrocarbons were examined. On the basis of the 16S rDNA sequences, 8 different kinds of microbial species, including Pseudomonas plecoglossicida, Xanthobacter flavus, Ralstonia eutropha, were identified. All of the isolated strains can degrade MCA. In particular, strains UE-2 and UE-15 degraded 1,2-DCA, and strain CA-11 degraded 2,3-DCPA, which are hardly degraded by other strains.

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