Diversity of benzylsuccinate synthase-like (bssA) genes in hydrocarbon-polluted marine sediments suggests substrate-dependent clustering.

ABSTRACT: The potential of hydrocarbon biodegradation in marine sediments was determined through the detection of a functional biomarker, the bssA gene, coding for benzylsuccinate synthase, the key enzyme of anaerobic toluene degradation. Eight bssA clone libraries (409 sequences) were constructed from polluted sediments affected by the Prestige oil spill in the Atlantic Islands National Park and from hydrocarbon-amended sediment microcosms in Mallorca. The amplified products and database-derived bssA-like sequences grouped into four major clusters, as determined by phylogenetic reconstruction, principal coordinate analysis (PCoA), and a subfamily prediction tool. In addition to the classical bssA sequences that were targeted, we were able to detect sequences homologous to the naphthylmethylsuccinat

SUBMITTER: Acosta-Gonzalez A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3675921 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature