Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons degradation by marine-derived basidiomycetes: optimization of the degradation process

Abstract

Pyrene and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) are high molecular weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) recalcitrant to microbial attack. Although studies related to the microbial degradation of PAHs have been carried out in the last decades, little is known about degradation of these environmental pollutants by fungi from marine origin. Therefore, this study aimed to select one PAHs degrader among three marine-derived basidiomycete fungi and to study its pyrene detoxification/degradation. Marasmiellus sp. CBMAI 1062 showed higher levels of pyrene and BaP degradation and was subjected to studies related to pyrene degradation optimization using experimental design, acute toxicity, organic carbon removal (TOC), and metabolite evaluation. The experimental design resulted in an efficient pyrene degradation, reducing the experiment time while the PAH concentration applied in the assays was increased. The selected fungus was able to degrade almost 100% of pyrene (0.08 mg mL−1) after 48 h of incubation under saline condition, without generating toxic compounds and with a TOC reduction of 17%. Intermediate metabolites of pyrene degradation were identified, suggesting that the fungus degraded the compound via the cytochrome P450 system and epoxide hydrolases. These results highlight the relevance of marine-derived fungi in the field of PAH bioremediation, adding value to the blue biotechnology.

Unraveling the Contribution of High Temperature Stage to Jiang-Flavor Daqu, a Liquor Starter for Production of Chinese Jiang-Flavor Baijiu, With Special Reference to Metatranscriptomics

“…However, the remainder constituted those enzymes that were only detected (at low levels) in J3, indicating that trace aroma compounds were likely particularly associated with JF liquor flavor, such as ethyl benzeneacetate and benzaldehyde ( Xiao et al, 2016 ). Highly expressed members of these enzymes were mostly derived from fungal species in J3, which appears consistent with the contributions of some fungi toward the degradation of aromatic compounds ( Godoy et al, 2016 ; Sun et al, 2016 ; Vieira et al, 2018 ). Alternatively, enzymes expressed at low levels from bacteria may also substantively contribute to degradation of aromatic compounds ( Pérez-Pantoja et al, 2015 ; Van der Waals et al, 2017 ).…”

Fungi in sands of Mediterranean Sea beaches of Israel—Potential relevance to human health and well‐being

“…Sabino et al 33 reported on a large survey along the coast of Portugal in which they found dermatophytes only in a small proportion of samples. It is of interest that both Cryptococcus and Rhodotorula species, found in several beaches of the Israeli Mediterranean Coast, are Basidiomycetes, which have been described recently 34 as being able to degrade aromatic hydrocarbons that can be pollutants due to spill of petroleum in association with shipping. Cryptococcus uzbekistanensis was found in the sand beach of Ashdod, which is a major port of Israel.…”

Marine Fungi: Biotechnological Perspectives from Deep-Hypersaline Anoxic Basins

“…Moreover, three additional enzyme families are produced by fungi for bio-remediation: Esterases, glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) and cytochrome P450 monooxygenase [227]. Accounting for this enormous set of enzymes, extremophilic marine fungi are suitable for the bioremediation of polluted saline environments due to their tolerance to high-salt conditions, thus becoming an essential resource in bioremediation of marine PAH-polluted environments [228,229] Some marine fungal species found in the Mediterranean and Red Sea DHABs, belonging to Aspergillus, Penicillium, Candida and Rhodotorula genera, have been reported to degrade some hydrocarbon compounds [230,231]. In particular, Rhodotorula glutinis identified in the DHAB L'Atalante has been reported to actively reduce oil compounds in petroleum polluted soils [232].…”