[Microbial degradation of glyphosate herbicides (review)].

This review analyzes the issues associated with biodegradation of glyphosate (N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine), one of the most widespread herbicides. Glyphosate can accumulate in natural environments and can be toxic not only for plants but also for animals and bacteria. Microbial transformation and mineralization ofglyphosate, as the only means of its rapid degradation, are discussed in detail. The different pathways of glyphosate catabolism employed by the known destructing bacteria representing different taxonomic groups are described. The potential existence of alternative glyphosate degradation pathways, apart from those mediated by C-P lyase and glyphosate oxidoreductase, is considered. Since the problem of purifying glyphosate-contaminated soils and water bodies is a topical issue, the possibilities of applying glyphosate-degrading bacteria for their bioremediation are discussed.

[Xylanase and cellulase of fungus Cerrena unicolor VKM F-3196: production, properties, and applications for the saccharification of plant material].

Under the conditions of submerged cultivation in a medium containing microcrystalline cellulose, the Cerrena unicolor VKM F-3196 basidiomycete is capable of producing xylanase and cellulase. Electrophoretically homogeneous cellulase and xylanase were obtained using ion exchange and hydrophobic chromatography. The molecular weight of both cellulase and xylanase was -44 kDa. It was shown that xylanase catalyzed the hydrolysis of xylan with the production of xylose, xylobiose, and xylotetrose and it exhibited properties of endoxylanases. Cellulase hydrolyzed carboxymethylcellulose, xylan, and microcrystalline cellulose with the formation of cellotriose and cellotetraose. For both enzymes, the pH optimum was -4.0. The enzymes exhibited moderate thermostability: xylanase retained 35% of the initial activity for an hour at 60 degrees C; cellulase, 10% under the same conditions. Xylanase, cellulose, and a mixture of these enzymes saccharified plant material (wheat, rye, wheat middling, and oat), indicating the possible use of these enzymes in biotechnology.

[Sorption and microbial degradation of glyphosphate in soil suspensions].

Sorption and microbial destruction of glyphosphate, the active agent of the herbicide Groundbio, in suspensions of sod-podzolic and gray forest soils has been studied. According to the values of the adsorptive capacity (3560 and 8200 mg/kg, respectively) and the Freundlich constants (Kf, 15.6 and 18.7, respectively), these soils had a relatively high sorption capacity as related to the herbicide. Sorbed glyphosphate is represented by extractable and bound (inextractable) fractions. After long-term incubation of sterile suspensions, the ratio of these fractions reached 2 : 1 for sod-podzolic soil and 1 : 1 for gray forest soil. Inoculation of a native suspension of sod-podzolic soil with cells of a selected degrader strain Ochrobactum anthropi GPK 3 resulted in a 25.4% decrease in the total glyphosphate content (dissolved and extractable), whereas in a noninoculated suspension, the loss did not exceed 5.5%. The potential for the use of a selected bacterial strain for intensification of the glyphosphate destruction processes in soil systems is demonstrated for the first time.

[Thiomorpholine transformation by the fungus Bjerkandera adusta].

A screening of lignin-degrading basidial fungi that can grow in the presence of thiomorpholine derivatives (the mixture of 1,4-perhydrothiazines) has been performed. Strain Bjerkandera adusta VKM F-3477 was shown to have the maximal rate of growth in the presence of these compounds, and its capacity for thiomorpholine degradation was studied. The methods of quantitative analysis of thiomorpholine and its degradation products on the basis of thin layer chromatography and high-performance liquid chromatography were developed. It was shown that the B. adusta strain did not utilize thiomorpholine as a carbon source but transformed it into thiomorpholine sulfoxide that accumulated in the medium. Mn peroxidase produced by B. adusta in the course of thiomorpholine transformation is not directly involved in its oxidation.

[Microbial degradation of organophosphonates by soil bacteria].

Bacteria that can utilize glyphosate (GP) or methylphosphonic acid (MPA) as a sole phosphorus source have been isolated from soil samples polluted with organophosphonates (OP). No matter which of these compounds was predominant in the native habitat of the strains, all of them utilized methylphosphonate. Some of the strains isolated from GP-polluted soil could utilize both phosphorus sources. Strains growing on glyphosate only were not isolated. The isolates retained high destructive activity after long-term storage of cells in lyophilized state, freezing to -20 degrees C, and maintenance on various media under mineral oil. When phosphorus-starved cells (with 2% phosphorus) were used as inoculum, the efficiency of OP biodegradation significantly increased (1.5-fold).

[Hybrid Mn-peroxidases from basidiomycetes: a review].

The Mn-peroxidase from the fungus Panus tigrinus 8/18 is a hybrid enzyme. It catalyzes both Mn2+-dependent and Mn2+-independent oxidation of organic substrates. The spectral properties of intermediates and the pathway of the catalytic cycle are typical of hybrid Mn-peroxidases. The enzyme catalyzes the "oxidase" reaction (NADH oxidation) without peroxide and with the presence of Mn2+, which takes part in hydrogen peroxide production via Mn3+ and preserves the enzyme from inactivation. With the presence of organic mediators, the hybrid Mn-peroxidase oxidizes nonphenolic compounds: aromatic alcohols and a nonphenolic lignin model compound. The degree of conversion of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol is higher with the presence of l-hydroxybenzotriazole.

[Conversion of polychlorophenols by laccases with 1-hydroxybenzotriazole as a mediator].

The action of purified laccase from the basidial fungi Cerrena unicolor and Trametes sp. on 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP) and pentachlorophenol (PCP) was studied, including reactions involving I-hydroxybenzotriazole as a mediator. Oxidation of 2,4,6-TCP by laccase without the mediator yielded 2,6-dichlorobenzoquinone as a primary conversion product, whereas PCP was not oxidized. Products of further conversion of 2,4,6-TCP and PCP formed with the presence of the mediator.

[Laccase of the lignolytic fungus Trametes hirsuta: purification and characterization of the enzyme, and cloning and primary structure of the gene].

The main physicochemical characteristics of the major isoform of the laccase secreted by the fungu, Trametes hirsuta 072 were studied. The enzyme belongs to the group of high redox potential laccases (E(T1) = 790 +/- 5), and it oxidizes with high efficiency various substrates of phenolic nature. The gene of this isoform was cloned, and its nucleotide sequence was determined. The length of the complete gene is 2134 bp. It comprises 11 exons and 10 introns. Analysis of the amino acid sequence of T. hirsuta 072 laccase demonstrated a high homology (to 96.9%) to the other laccases secreted by fungi of the genus Trametes.

[New ways to increasing the yield of laccase from Panus tigrinus fungi].

We optimized the conditions for production of laccase by lignolytic fungi Panus tigrinus 8/18. 2,4-Dimethylphenol was used as an aromatic inductor. The addition of 2,4-dimethylphenol and 2 mM CuSO4 to a rich medium was followed by a tenfold increase in the yield of this enzyme. Additional treatment of the medium with perftoran (oxygen-carrying agent) and immobilization of the fungus on polycaproamide fibers increased significantly laccase activity in the medium. The conditions for cultivation of P. tigrinus fungi were optimized. It allowed us to increase laccase activity in the medium by 25 times (compared to activity of the enzyme obtained with previously described methods).