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MINERALIZATION OF RECALCITRANT ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTANTS BY A WHITE ROT FUNGUS
Citation:
Bumpus, J. AND S. Aust. MINERALIZATION OF RECALCITRANT ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTANTS BY A WHITE ROT FUNGUS. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/A-93/134.
Description:
The white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium is able to degrade lignin, a structurally complex, naturally occurring and environmentally persistent, non-repeating heteropolyrner. revious studies have shown that this fungus is also able-to degrade a wide variety of synthetic organopollutants and that biodegradation is dependent at least in part, on the lignin degrading system. xamples of recalcitrant chemicals that are degraded to carbon dioxide by this fungus include 3,4,3'4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl 2,4,5,2'4,5'-hexachlorobiphenyl, 2,3,7,8-tetrachloro-dibenzo[p]dioxin (TCDD), 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)-ethane (DDT), 1,C,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexane (Lindane) and benzo[a]pyrene. In the present study, we have shown that Chlordane, 2,2,2-trichloro-1,1-bis(4chlorophenyl)ethanol (dicofol), pentachlorophenol, Aroclor-1254, phenanthrene, biphenyl p-cresol and 2-methylnaphthalene also are degraded to carbon dioxide by this fungus. umber of these compounds were selected for further study to more thoroughly document biodegradation. sing Chlordane and pentachlorophenol it was shown that, like lignin, mineralization of these two environmentally persistent xenobiotics was promoted in nutrient nitrogen deficient cultures while mineralization was suppressed in nutrient nitrogen sufficient cultures.