Isolation and characterization of biodegradable plastic degrading bacteria from deep-sea environments

Abstract

We have isolated thirteen different bacterial strains as poly -caprolactone (PCL)-degrading bacteria from the Kurile and Japan Trenches at a depth of 5,000-7,000 m (deeper ocean bottoms). The isolates belong to the Shewanella, Moritella, Psychrobacter and Pseudomonas genera. This is the first record of PCL degrading bacteria isolated from deep-sea environments at depth of over 5,000 m. Six strains of the isolates, numbered CT01 in genus Shewanella, CT12, JT01 and JT04 in genus Moritella, JT05 in genus Psychrobacter, and JT08 in genus Pseudomonas were selected for investigation of their cell shapes, degrading abilities for several aliphatic polyesters, and growth profiles. The cell shapes of the strains, except JT05, were rod-shaped, non-spore-forming and motile by means of a single or multi polar flagella. The cell shapes of JT05 were coccal with no visible flagella. From the results of degradation tests on six different alihphatic polyesters, all strains could degrade only PCL. Strains CT01, CT12, JT01 and JT04 are psychrophilic and pressure tolerant bacteria and three strains except JT04 showed typical piezophilic growth profiles. Therefore, it is possible that these strains might play a role in degrading aliphatic polyesters under deep-sea conditions, ie., low-temperatures and high hydrostatic pressures.

Degradation of poly(ε-caprolactone) by a thermophilic bacterium Ralstonia sp. strain MRL-TL isolated from hot spring

“…Several researchers have reported that PCL is degradable in biotic environment including soil, seawater, active sludge, and compost (Kim and Rhee, 2003;Cho et al, 2011;Sekiguchi et al, 2011). The degradation of polymers in nature is attributed to microorganisms including bacteria and fungi, that secrete extracellular depolymerases (Gu et al, 2000;Gu, 2003;Tokiwa et al, 2009).…”

Beyond oil degradation: enzymatic potential of Alcanivorax to degrade natural and synthetic polyesters

“…Furthermore, polymer degradation in marine environments is even more challenging due to the low temperatures and oligotrophic conditions that hamper microbial activity as well as the reduced encounter rate in such dilute ecosystems. Hence, although some marine microbial isolates have been reported to degrade a range of polyesters (Mabrouk and Sabry, ; Ghanem et al ., ; Sekiguchi et al ., ), such a process is not as obvious in marine environments as highlighted by studies that failed to observe degradation of some theoretically biodegradable polymers such as PHB, PES and PBS (Sekiguchi et al ., ; Bagheri et al ., ).…”

“…Hence, although some marine microbial isolates have been reported to degrade a range of polyesters (Mabrouk and Sabry, 2001;Ghanem et al, 2005;Sekiguchi et al, 2010), such a process is not as obvious in marine environments as highlighted by studies that failed to observe degradation of some theoretically biodegradable polymers such as PHB, PES and PBS (Sekiguchi et al, 2010;Bagheri et al, 2017).…”

Potensi Bakteri Laut Untuk Bioremediasi

“…Oleh karena itu, sampah plastik telah menjadi ancaman besar bagi lingkungan perairan laut Indonesia. (Sekiguchi et al, 2010).…”