Anaerobic methyl tert-butyl ether-degrading microorganisms identified in wastewater treatment plant samples by stable isotope probing.

ABSTRACT: Anaerobic methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) degradation potential was investigated in samples from a range of sources. From these 22 experimental variations, only one source (from wastewater treatment plant samples) exhibited MTBE degradation. These microcosms were methanogenic and were subjected to DNA-based stable isotope probing (SIP) targeted to both bacteria and archaea to identify the putative MTBE degraders. For this purpose, DNA was extracted at two time points, subjected to ultracentrifugation, fractioning, and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP). In addition, bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA gene clone libraries were constructed. The SIP experiments indicated bacteria in the phyla Firmicutes (family Ruminococcaceae) and Alphaproteobacteria (genus Sphingopyxis) w

SUBMITTER: Sun W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3318814 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature