Mineralization of hydroxylated isoproturon metabolites produced by fungi

When exposed to the herbicide isoproturon, some soil fungi in pure culture metabolize the substance to hydroxylated metabolites. Hydroxylated metabolites of isoproturon have also been detected in soil studies. In an agricultural soil not previously exposed to isoproturon we found that the hydroxylated isoproturon metabolite N-(4-(2-hydroxy-1-methylethyl)phenyl)-N′,N′-dimethylurea mineralized faster than both isoproturon and its N-demethylated metabolite N-(4-isopropylphenyl)-N′-methylurea (MDIPU), thus indicating that mineralization of isoproturon is stimulated by fungal hydroxylation in this soil. In soils previously treated with isoproturon, in contrast, isoproturon and both its hydroxylated and demethylated metabolites mineralized at almost the same rate with up to 52% of the ¹⁴C-ring-carbon being degraded to ¹⁴CO₂ within 63 days. Thus hydroxylated metabolites of isoproturon do not seem to be more persistent than isoproturon, and hence may degrade before they can leach from topsoil and contaminate the aquatic environment. While an isoproturon-mineralizing bacterium Sphingomonas sp. SRS2 and a MDIPU-mineralizing mixed bacterial culture were able to deplete the medium of hydroxylated metabolites, little or no mineralization took place. This indicates that other bacteria must be present in the soil that are able to benefit from isoproturon being made available to mineralization by fungal hydroxylation.     

Linking the B ring hydroxylation pattern of condensed tannins to C, N and P mineralization. A case study using four tannins

Condensed tannins (CTs) are a major component of litter inputs, but little is known about the effects of tannin structural variations on soil biological processes and organic matter development. Four different CTs extracted from balsam fir, western red cedar, kalmia and black spruce were added to Corsican pine litter and subsequently incubated for 16 weeks in order to investigate the effect of the B ring hydroxylation pattern on C, N and P transformations. While for C mineralization the chain length and stereochemistry of the CTs seemed to be a more important parameter, net N and P mineralization rates were clearly reduced compared with non-amended litter. With regard to the B ring hydroxylation, the prodelphinidin (PD) CTs having predominantly three hydroxy groups at the B ring (balsam fir and western red cedar) exhibited significantly lower mineralization rates than the procyanidin (PC) CTs having two OH groups (kalmia and black spruce). The same was true for net nitrification, but this process was only slightly affected by the CTs. Although based on only four CTs, this study indicates that B ring hydroxylation is an important variable determining net N and P mineralization rates. Our results support previous suggestions that PD tannins bind to or react more strongly with soil organic matter. Therefore, more than PC tannins, they reduce the availability of organic N for mineralization as well as their own detectability by standard methods for soil CT.     

PBDEs好氧微生物降解动力学过程及热力学机制研究

多溴联苯醚(PBDEs)是一种曾在全球范围内被广泛使用的溴代阻燃剂,具有半挥发性、生物蓄积性、神经毒性和内分泌干扰效应等,严重威胁生态环境和人体健康安全。本研究选择典型好氧降解菌伯克氏菌属LB400,对环境中普遍检出的中低溴联苯醚开展了降解动力学过程研究,探讨了外加碳源作为共代谢底物对降解性能的影响,模拟计算了降解中关键反应路径热力学状态函数性质变化,以揭示其与表观降解速率常数k之间的相关关系。结果表明:联苯作为共代谢底物时PBDEs的去除效率最高,在降解菌的作用下,0~120 h内中低溴代PBDEs均能够发生降解,降解过程符合一级反应动力学。羟基化反应可能是PBDEs微生物降解过程的速控步骤,相比于间/对位取代,活性氧自由基如·OH更倾向于攻击苯环碳原子的邻/间位置,这为揭示PBDEs好氧微生物降解的分子作用机制,促进土壤中高效好氧降解菌的选育与污染修复应用提供了科学依据。