Enrichment and characterization of steroid-degrading microbes for targeted removal of steroid hormone micropollutants in small-scale wastewater treatment solutions.

ABSTRACT: In remote areas, wastewater treatment typically occurs directly at the source in decentralized systems, which often work well in removing biochemical oxygen demand, nitrogen, and phosphorus, but not micropollutants like pharmaceuticals and steroid hormones. Microorganisms capable of degrading such micropollutants could be used in bioengineered systems to increase micropollutant removal. In this study, bacteria were enriched from municipal wastewater in flow-through reactors supplemented with testosterone (TE), androsta-1,4-dien-3,17-dion (ADD), 17β-estradiol (E2), or 17α-ethinylestradiol (EE2). The removal of TE and ADD was stable over multiple transfers, and several androgen-degrading Comamonas strains were isolated. In contrast, the removal of E2 and EE2 was considerably slower, a

SUBMITTER: Kujala K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12584686 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature