Fast Location and Isolation of Phenanthrene-degrading Halophilic Microbial Community and its Degradation Pathway

Abstract

Microbial consortium WZ-4, which could degrade phenanthrene (PHE) as the main carbon and energy source, was isolated from the aerobic sludge of Weizhou wastewater treatment plant. Under the condition of high salinity (3%), the degradation of PHE (100 mg/L) was 87.76% in 7d. Its metabolites, genome sequence and biodegradation pathway were studied. The main metabolites include 1,2-dihydroxynaphthalene, 1-hydroxy-2-naphthalene, 5,6-benzocoumarin and phthalic acid. 12 PHE degrading enzyme genes appeared in the metagenome sequencing of WZ-4, and the genes involved in PHE degradation were included phdE, phdF, phdG, and pcaL. Based on the metabolites detected by GC-MS and the potential PHE-degrading genes identified by BLAST search, biodegradation pathway of PHE by WZ-4 was predicted.