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Degradation of BTEX mixture by a new Pseudomonas putida strain: role of the quorum sensing in the modulation of the upper BTEX oxidative pathway

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Abstract

A new Pseudomonas putida strain (AQ8) was isolated from a decommissioned oil refinery’s soil in Italy and characterized for its ability to degrade BTEX. The draft genome of the new strain was sequenced and annotated for genes that encode enzymes putatively involved in BTEX degradation and quorum sensing. The strain was transformed with a plasmid expressing lactonase, which cleaves the autoinducer quorum sensing signal molecule, the acyl-homoserine lactone, to obtain a quorum sensing minus strain. P. putida AQ8 depleted the 40% on average of all the components of the initial BTEX concentration in 36 h. The quorum sensing minus strain, in the same time interval, depleted only the 10% of the initial BTEX concentration. The role of quorum sensing in regulating the expression of the annotated benzene/toluene dioxygenase gene (benzA) and biphenyl/toluene/benzene dioxygenase (bphA) genes, which are involved in BTEX degradation, was studied by quantitative RT-real-time quantitative (q)PCR analysis. The qPCR data showed decreased levels of expression of the benzA and bphA genes in the quorum sensing minus strain. Our results showed, for the first time, quorum sensing modulation of the level of transcription of dioxygenase genes in the upper BTEX oxidation pathway.

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Abbreviations

rRNA:

Ribosomal DNA

X-gal:

5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-β-D-galactopyranoside

DMSO:

Dimethyl sulfoxide

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Funding

This manuscript presents research results derived from the Bioresnova project 135/11, co-financed by Fondazione Pisa and the Department of Biology, University of Pisa. The research was supported, in part, by a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery grant (RGPIN-04945-2017) held by DBL. SB was supported by the Department of Biology and BD Biodigressioni srl Pisa, Italy. IC was a visiting PhD student in the Department of Biosystems Engineering at the University of Manitoba, Canada, supported by Discovery grant (RGPIN-04945-2017) held by DBL.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy

    Ilaria Chicca, Simone Becarelli, Giulio Petroni & Simona Di Gregorio

  2. Department of Biosystems Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

    Ilaria Chicca, Christopher Dartiahl & David B. Levin

  3. Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio-Emilia, Modena, Italy

    Salvatore La China

  4. Department of Microbiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

    Teresa De Kievit

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  1. Ilaria Chicca
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  2. Simone Becarelli
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  3. Christopher Dartiahl
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  4. Salvatore La China
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  5. Teresa De Kievit
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  6. Giulio Petroni
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  7. Simona Di Gregorio
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  8. David B. Levin
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Correspondence to Simona Di Gregorio.

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Chicca, I., Becarelli, S., Dartiahl, C. et al. Degradation of BTEX mixture by a new Pseudomonas putida strain: role of the quorum sensing in the modulation of the upper BTEX oxidative pathway. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 36203–36214 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-09650-y

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