Decomposition of vanillin by soil microorganisms

In chernozem soil, vanillin was decomposed via vanillic and protocatechuic acid before the aromatic ring opened. The rate curves of oxygen consumption for the oxidation of vanillin were seen to have more than one maximum. During incubation of the soil with vanillin, the number of bacteria increased, especially those capable of utilizing vanillin as the sole carbon source. Of the 21 such strains isolated, 15 were identified asPseudomonas sp., five asCellulomonas sp. and one asAchromobacter sp. It was found that the course of the oxidation of vanillin varied at different p.H values and in different strains was found that the course of the oxidation of vanillin varied at different p.H values and in different strains of bacteria. In some cases, the phase of the oxidation of vanillin to vanillic acid was clearly differentiated from the subsequent decomposition of vanillic acid.     

Decomposition in estuarine salt marshes: the effect of soil salinity and soil water content

The relation between decomposition rates and soil salinity and moisture conditions in tidal marshes of the Westerschelde estuary was investigated. In the first part of the study, these soil factors were experimentally manipulated in field plots which were either screened from rainwater or which received an additional weekly supply of freshwater from April to September 1989. These treatments had no clear effect on soil salinities and moisture conditions in a low marsh site. Decomposition rates of Spartina anglica leaves (kept in litterbags in the plots) also did not differ between treatments. In screened plots of a middle marsh site, decomposition rate of Elymus pycnanthus leaves decreased significantly. The effect of the experimental treatments on soil moisture content was variable, but comparatively high soil salinity values (up to 61.3) were consistently found in these plots. It is suggested that the elevated salinity levels induced the decrease in decomposition rate.In the second part of the study, cellulolytic decomposition, measured by loss of tensile strength of strips of cotton test cloth, was investigated in relation to a non-manipulated range of soil salinities (3.8–24.2), by exposing the strips in a series of tidal marshes along the salt gradient of the Westerschelde estuary. No correlation between decomposition rate and soil salinity was found. In addition, no relation was found between decomposition rate and soil water content. The results of both parts of this study lead us to the hypothesis that rate limitation of decomposition in estuarine tidal marsh soils is found at high soil salinities only.     

Application of a novel fluorogenic polyurethane analogue probe in polyester-degrading microorganisms screening by microfluidic droplet

Application of polyester-degrading microorganisms or enzymes should be considered as an eco-friendly alternative to chemical recycling due to the huge plastic waste disposal nowadays. However, current impranil DLN-based screening of polyester-degrading microorganisms is time-consuming, labour-intensive and unable to distinguish polyesterases from other protease- or amidase-like enzymes. Herein, we present an approach that combined a novel synthetic fluorescent polyurethane analogue probe (FPAP), along with the droplet-based microfluidics to screen polyurethane-degrading microorganisms through fluorescence-activated droplet sorting (FADS) pipeline. The fluorescent probe FPAP exhibited a fluorescence enhancement effect once hydrolysed by polyesterases, along with a strong specificity in discriminating polyesterases from other non-active enzymes. Application of FPAP in a microfluidic droplet system demonstrated that this probe exhibited high sensitivity and efficiency in selecting positive droplets containing leaf-branch compost cutinase (LCC) enzymes. This novel fluorogenic probe, FPAP, combined with the droplet microfluidic system has the potential to be used in the exploitation of novel PUR-biocatalysts for biotechnological and environmental applications.     

Utilization and degradation of lindane by soil microorganisms

Of 147 microorganisms isolated from a loamy sand, 71 showed good growth with lindane (-1,2,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexane) and produced chloride in an aqueous medium. Thirteen soil microorganisms were selected to study the utilization of lindane. Lindane was metabolized by the microbes to -2,3,4,5,6-pentachloro-1-cyclohexene (-PCCH), -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene (-TCCH), -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene (-TCCH), -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene (-TCCH), and pentachlorobenzene (PCB). Cells of Pseudomonas sp. No. 62 grown on lindane simultaneously adapted to -PCCH, -TCCH, -TCCH, -TCCH, PCB, 1,2,3,4-tetrachlorobenzene (1,2,3,4-TCB) and 1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene (1,2,4,5-TCB). The bacteria degraded each of these chemicals at least partially as indicated by an increased rate of oxygen consumption.Abbreviations Lindane -1,2,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexane - -PCCH -2,3,4,5,6-pentachloro-1-cyclohexene - -TCCH -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene - -TCCH -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene - -TCCH -3,4,5,6-tetrachloro-1-cyclohexene - PCB pentachlorobenzene - 1,2,3,4-TCB 1,2,3,4-tetrachlorobenzene - 1,2,3,5-TCB 1,2,3,5-tetrachlorobenzene - 1,2,4,5-TCB 1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene - 1,2,3-tCB 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene - 1,2,4-tCB 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene - 1,3,5-tCB 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene - 1,2-DCB 1,2-dichlorobenzene - 1,3-DCB 1,3-dichlorobenzene - 1,4-DCB 1,4-dichlorobenzene - MCB monochlorobenzene Contribution No. 631, Research Institute, Agriculture Canada, University Sub Post Office, London, Ontario N6A 5B7     

Ethylene production by soil microorganisms.

Ethylene-producing strains of Penicillium cyclopium and P. crustosum were isolated from soil. These isolates produced ethylene on a variety of carbon growth substrates including phenolic acids. The quantities of ethylene produced on the various substrates varied, and the subtrate-ethylene prosuction pattern for P. cyclopium strains differed significantly from that of P. crustosum strains.     

垃圾渗滤液在土壤中的生物降解动态

通过室内好氧、厌氧2种培养,研究了3种不同填埋年限垃圾渗滤液在红壤和潮土中的生物降解动态.鲜样、天井洼样、水阁样垃圾渗滤液分别为填埋0年、4～5年和12年的垃圾渗滤液.结果表明,垃圾渗滤液在前7 d降解相对较快.在好氧培养条件下,红壤鲜样、天井洼样、水阁样渗滤液在前7 d的表观降解率为88.9%、60.5%、25.0%;潮土中的表观降解率更大,分别为96.6%、80.4%和65.0%;7 d后下降趋势均趋于平缓.在相同土壤中,填埋龄越短的垃圾渗滤液的表观降解率越大,在厌氧培养条件下的情况与此类似,但降解率不如好氧条件下高.在没有土壤介质参与的条件下(如低洼处积存的渗滤液),3种垃圾渗滤液自身降解速率均符合一级动力学方程.鲜样垃圾渗滤液降解的半衰期为12～16 d,其余垃圾渗滤液降解的半衰期为20～30 d.垃圾渗滤液一旦进入土壤环境,降解速率会大大加快.土壤处理垃圾渗滤液有一定的功效.     

Degradation of 4,5-dichloroguaiacol by soil microorganisms

No microorganisms could be isolated from chemostats or from a soil column fed with 4,5-dichloroguaiacol as the only carbon source. If guaiacol was added to chemostats with 4,5-dichloroguaiacol, either soil microbial consortia or guaiacol-degrading bacteria could dechlorinate the 4,5-dichloroguaiacol provided it was <0.2mm. A microbial consortium from farm soil removed 4,5-dichloroguaiacol under aerobic or anoxic conditions, with or without chlorolignin. Dichlorocatechol was the only 4,5-dichloroguaiacol-derived metabolite detected. In aerobic incubations, 4,5-dichlorocatechol was further degraded whereas under anoxic conditions it accumulated.     

Willow water uptake and shoot extension growth in response to nutrient and moisture on a clay landfill cap soil

Extension growth of willow (Salix viminalis L.) and changes in soil water were measured in lysimeters containing clay and sandy loam soils with different amendment and watering treatments. No water uptake was found below 0.3 m in the nutritionally poor unamended clay; amendment with organic matter to 0.4 m depth resulted in water extraction down to 0.5 m depth whereas in the sandy loam, there was greater extraction from all depths down to 0.6 m. With water stress, wilting of plants occurred when the volumetric soil water content at 0.1 m was about 31% in the clay and 22% in the sandy loam. Compared with shoots on plants in the amended clay, those in the unamended treatment showed reduced extension growth, little increase in stem basal area (SBA) and a small shoot leaf area, resulting from a reduced number of leaves shoot⁻¹ and a small average area leaf⁻¹. Water stress also reduced shoot extension growth, SBA gain and the leaf area on extension growth. Shoot growth rates were significantly correlated with air temperature and base temperatures between 2.0 and 7.6 °C were indicated for the different treatments. These studies have helped to explain some of the large treatment effects described previously on biomass production and plant leaf area.     

Microbial activity in the landfill soil

The research objective was to determine the activity of microorganisms in the soil exposed to direct influence of a landfill, as well as in the soil beyond its influence. Fluorescein diacetate (FDA) hydrofytic activity and respiration in the soil were determined. The highest number of cultivated bacteria was recorded at the site located within the zone of direct influence exerted by the landfill, whereas the least amount was found at a distance of 1000 metres from the landfill. In contrast, the largest numbers of molds were observed in the soil at a distance of 1000 m from the headquarters of the landfill. The highest FDA hydrolytic activity and biological oxygen demand (BOD₅) were recorded in the soil by the headquarters of the landfill, and the least parameters were revealed at a distance of 1000 m from the landfill. It was found a high correlation between the number of bacteria and FDA hydrolytic activity of soil and BOD₅ in the north-eastern of the landfill. However, in the same place, there is a low correlation between the number of molds, and FDA hydrolytic activity of soil and BOD₅.     

Methane oxidation in landfill cover soil

Methane oxidation in the cover soil of the Khmet'evo municipal landfill in Moscow oblast was investigated. Methane emission from the experimental parcel of the site was highly inhomogeneous. At a depth of 45-60 cm, the pore gas mainly consisted of CH4 (60-70%) and CO2 (30-40%). In the upper horizons of the cover soil, the concentration of these gases sharply decreased. Techniques for estimation of the methane-oxidizing activity in the cover soil of the landfill were tested. The rate of methane oxidation in the soil, the factor limiting methane emission from the surface of the site, correlated with the cell number of culturable methanotrophic bacteria. The method of indirect immunofluorescence revealed ten known species of methanotrophic bacteria in enrichment cultures obtained from samples of the cover soil. Our results also indicate the presence of unknown psychrotolerant methanotrophs that are active at the low temperatures characteristic of Moscow oblast.     

Decomposition of nucleic acids and some of their degradation products by microorganisms

A study was made of the decomposition of nucleic acids, uric acid and urea by different groups of soil microorganisms including bacilli, non-coryneform rods, corynebacteria (arthrobacters and non-arthrobacters), streptomycetes, fungi and yeasts. Hydrolysis of nucleic acids was found to be a common phenomenon. The decomposition of uric acid was readily carried out by arthrobacters and streptomycetes. Most bacilli, however, lacked this capacity. Few soil microorganisms degraded urea. Additional investigations were made of the breakdown of nucleic acids and their degradation products by coryneform bacteria from soil, cheese, sea-fish, sewage, the phyllosphere and poultry litter. Generally, coryneforms from soil could utilize allantoin as the sole source of nitrogen, carbon and energy in contrast to most of those from cheese which could not. Breakdown of uric acid and allantoin by washed cells of a coryneform strain from soil resulted in formation of ammonia; breakdown of these compounds by washed cells of a strain from cheese resulted in accumulation of urea.