Raoultella planticola, a new strain degrading 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid

A new strain that degrades the herbicide 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T) was isolated from soil, which was exposed to factors related to the petrochemical industry. According to its physiological, biochemical, cultural, and morphological traits, together with the sequence of the 16S rRNA gene, the strain was identified as Raoultella planticola 33-4ch. The strain could consume 2,4,5-T as a sole source of carbon and energy. The amount of 2,4,5-T in the culture medium decreased by 51% after five days of incubation. Raoultella planticola 33-4ch consumes 2,4,5-T to produce 4-chlorophenoxyacetic, phenoxyacetic, and 3-methyl-2,6-dioxo-4-hexenoic acids.     

Electroneuromyographic control of the efficacy of treatment of vertebral syndromes in aged patients

We studied the electroneuromyographic (ENMG) indices in aged patients with cervical vertebral syndromes. The main group of 116 patients was treated with manipulation physical therapy, while the second group of 62 patients was subjected to traditional curative procedures. In both patient groups, modifications of the EMG pattern of the forelimb muscles, a decrease in the conduction velocity via then. medianus, and a drop in the amplitude of M responses of themm. tenar et hypotenar were observed on the injured side. After a course of manipulation therapy, a clear trend toward normalization of the above indices was observed in the patients with a reflex pattern of the syndrome. This trend was less intensive in the subgroup with the root syndrome pattern. In patients treated according to the traditional schemes, positive shifts in the ENMG indices were rather small, in spite of some improvement of their clinical state. We emphasize that electrophysiological control of the efficacy of treatment in the cases of vertebral syndromes is extremely desirable, especially in groups of aged patients.     

Efficient Uptake of Cesium Ions by Rhodococcus Cells

Bacteria of the genus Rhodococcus were found to be able to accumulate cesium by means of active transport and nonspecific sorption on the cell surface structures. The maximum removal (up to 97%) of cesium from a medium supplemented with ammonium acetate was observed at 28°C, pH 7.8–8.6, and an equimolar content (0.2 mM) of potassium and cesium ions in the medium. The most active cesium-accumulating rhodococcal strains may be useful in biological treatment of industrial wastewaters contaminated with radionuclides.     

Cyanide-resistant respiration of bacteria and its relation to metabolite oversynthesis

The phenomenon of cyanide-resistant respiration was studied in bacteria as well as its relation to the oversynthesis of metabolites. Cyanide-resistant respiration was shown to be common of aerobic and facultative anaerobic bacteria. The resistance of respiration to cyanide was observed when the growth of a microbial culture was inhibited or ceased entirely, provided the culture lacked the oversynthesis of metabolites. When a culture was capable of metabolites oversynthesis under such conditions, cyanide-resistant respiration (if any) declined. Therefore, there is a competition between metabolites oversynthesis and cyanide-resistant respiration, which is typical of many microorganisms.     

Use of the Phenol-Degrading <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas aeruginosa</Emphasis> Strain 21SG for Industrial Wastewater Decontamination

The features of a phenol-degrading Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain 21SG isolated from the soil at the territory of Russia’s largest manufacturing facility for synthetic tanning agents (city of Ufa, Bashkortostan Republic) are reported. The strain identification was based on cultural, morphological, physiological, biochemical, and morphometric features and on the results of comparative analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences. The growth of P. aeruginosa 21SG was assessed in batch culture, and a decrease of phenol content in the culture liquid by 84% of the control level after 4 days was observed. The possibility of using P. aeruginosa 21SG for the destruction of phenol present in wastewater from the petrochemical industry and tanning extract production facilities was detected.     

Bacterial Genes of Non-Heme Iron Oxygenases,Which Have a Rieske-Type Cluster,Catalyzing Initial Stages of Degradation of Chlorophenoxyacetic Acids

Hydroxylation of the benzoic ring by non-heme iron oxygenases having a Rieske-type cluster is the key step in the aerobic degradation of chloroaromatic compounds by bacteria. Rieske oxygenases (RO) catalyze the oxidative decarboxylation reaction unique to the enzymes of this family with the formation of corresponding phenolic compounds. This review discusses the general structure, function, and classification of ROs that catalyze the oxidation of chlorophenoxyacetic acids; genes encoding the ROs with their phylogenetic classes are also reviewed.