Analysis of s-triazine-degrading microbial communities in soils using most-probable-number enumeration and tetrazolium-salt detection

Authors

  • M. Alejandro Dinamarca Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile
  • Francisco Cereceda-Balic Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile
  • Ximena Fadic Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile
  • Michael Seeger Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Keywords:

Pseudomonas sp. ADP, s-triazine, simazine, atrazine, tetrazolium salt, herbicides, biodegradation

Abstract

A simple and sensitive method for the detection and enumeration of microbial s-triazine-degrading microorganisms in soil was designed. The procedure is based on the ability of some microbes to use s-triazines, such as simazine, atrazine, and cyanuric acid, as sole nitrogen source. It employs the respiration indicator 2,3,5-triphenyl-2H-tetrazolium chloride (TTC) to detect metabolic activity and the most-probable-number (MPN) enumeration in microtiter plates. The method was used to identify simazine- and cyanuric acid-degrading activities in agricultural soils treated with the herbicide simazine. The MPN-TTC method showed that the number of simazine- and cyanuric acid-degrading microorganisms increased four weeks after the herbicide simazine had been applied. [Int Microbiol 2007; 10(3):209-215]

Author Biographies

M. Alejandro Dinamarca, Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile Laboratory of Microbial Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile

Francisco Cereceda-Balic, Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Ximena Fadic, Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Michael Seeger, Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Environmental Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry & Millennium Nucleus of Microbial Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology, Technical University Federico Santa María, Valparaíso, Chile

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Published

2010-01-22

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Section

Research Articles