Abstract
Biodegradation of the endocrine-disrupting chemical di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) was investigated using a bacterium, Pseudomonas fluorescens B-1, isolated from mangrove sediment. The effects of temperature, pH, salinity, and oxygen availability on DBP degradation were studied. Degradation of DBP was monitored by solid-phase extraction using reversed-phase HPLC and UV detection. The major metabolites of DBP degradation were identified as mono-n-butyl phthalate and phthalic acid by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and a pathway of degradation was proposed. Degradation by P. fluorescens B-1 conformed to first-order kinetics. Degradation of DBP was also tested in seawater by inoculating P. fluorescens B-1, and complete degradation of an initial concentration of 100 μg/l was achieved in 144 h. These results suggest that DBP is readily degraded by bacteria in natural environments.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 946-951 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| State | Published - Oct 2005 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Biodegradation
- Di-n-butyl phthalate
- Kinetics
- Mechanism
- Phthalates