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CHARACTERIZATION AND APPLICATIONS OF REDUCTIVE DEHALOGENASE GENES IN ENHANCEMENT AND MONITORING OF BIODEGRADATION OF CHLORINATED POLLUTANTS
Description:
Of the currently known reductive dehalogenase genes, few have functions assigned, and it seems likely that many more remain to be discovered. Very little is known of the ecology of the organisms that harbor these genes, that encode enzymes that are key to the anaerobic dechlorination and detoxification of chlorinated pollutants. The construction of a microarray including all known reductive dehalogenase genes would allow for the detection of these genes at contaminated sites. Sites with reductive dechlorination activity that do not hybridize to the known genes would potentially yield new genes of this family. Use of the microarray to detect messenger RNA molecules transcribed in response to exposure of pure cultures to various chlorinated compounds would aid I the assignmnet of function to those of unknown function. The assignmnet of function, discovery of new functions, and understanding of the ecology of these organisms would aid in the removal of these pollutants from the environment