The Prestige oil spill. I. Biodegradation of a heavy fuel oil under simulated conditions

The pyrene-degrading Mycobacterium sp. strain AP1 grew in nutrient-supplemented artificial seawater with a heavy fuel oil as the sole carbon source, causing the complete removal of all linear (C 12 to C 40 ) and branched alkanes from the aliphatic fraction, as well as an extensive degradation of the three-and four-ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) phenanthrene (95%), anthracene (80%), fluoranthene (80%), pyrene (75%), and benzo(a)anthracene (30%). Alkylated PAHs, which are more abundant in crude oils than the nonsubstituted compounds, were selectively attacked at extents that varied from more than 90% for dimethylnaphthalenes, methylphenanthrenes, methylfluorenes, and methyldibenzothiophenes to about 30% for monomethylated fluoranthenes/pyrenes and trimethylated phenanthrenes and dibenzothiophenes. Identification of key metabolites indicated the utilization of phenanthrene, pyrene, and fluoranthene by known assimilatory metabolic routes, while other components were cooxidized. Detection of mono-and dimethylated phthalic acids demonstrated ring cleavage and further oxidation of alkyl PAHs. The extensive degradation of the alkanes, the two-, three-, and four-ring PAHs, and their 1-, 2-, and 3-methyl derivatives from a complex mixture of hydrocarbons by Mycobacterium sp. strain AP1 illustrates the great substrate versatility of alkane-and PAH-degrading mycobacteria.

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 80%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Actions of Mycobacterium sp. Strain AP1 on the Saturated- and Aromatic-Hydrocarbon Fractions of Fuel Oil in a Marine Medium

Vilà

Grifoll

2009

“…Because the Prestige oil was composed of both alkanes and aromatic hydrocarbons, the stimulation of a specific degrader population suggests that the alkane-degrading community responded more rapidly in these sediments; this conclusion was supported by a low nC18/phytane ratio (see Fig. S1b in the supplemental material) (56). Still, the presence of bssA-like sequences in the untreated sample suggests a low basal level of hydrocarbons in this area (e.g., through sporadic bilge water discharges), which would sustain such microbial populations.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 86%

Diversity of Benzylsuccinate Synthase-Like ( bssA ) Genes in Hydrocarbon-Polluted Marine Sediments Suggests Substrate-Dependent Clustering

Acosta-González

Rosselló‐Móra

Marqués

2013

bThe potential of hydrocarbon biodegradation in marine sediments was determined through the detection of a functional biomarker, the bssA gene, coding for benzylsuccinate synthase, the key enzyme of anaerobic toluene degradation. Eight bssA clone libraries (409 sequences) were constructed from polluted sediments affected by the Prestige oil spill in the Atlantic Islands National Park and from hydrocarbon-amended sediment microcosms in Mallorca. The amplified products and database-derived bssA-like sequences grouped into four major clusters, as determined by phylogenetic reconstruction, principal coordinate analysis (PCoA), and a subfamily prediction tool. In addition to the classical bssA sequences that were targeted, we were able to detect sequences homologous to the naphthylmethylsuccinate synthase gene (nmsA) and the alkylsuccinate synthase gene (assA), the bssA homologues for anaerobic 2-methylnaphthalene and alkane degradation, respectively. The detection of bssA-like variants was determined by the persistence and level of pollution in the marine samples. The observed level of gene diversity was lower in the Mallorca sediments, which were dominated by assA-like sequences. In contrast, the Atlantic Islands samples, which were highly contaminated with methylnaphthalene-rich crude oil, showed a high proportion of nmsA-like sequences. Some of the detected genes were phylogenetically related to Deltaproteobacteria communities, previously described as the predominant hydrocarbon degraders at these sites. Differences between all detected bssA-like genes described to date indicate separation between marine and terrestrial sequences and further subgrouping according to taxonomic affiliation. Global analysis suggested that bssA homologues appeared to cluster according to substrate specificity. We observed undetected divergent gene lineages of bssA homologues, which evidence the existence of new degrader groups in these environments.

“…1), oil-polluted samples were taken from the supralittoral zone of a cobblestone beach located next to Faro Lariño (42°46Ј25ЉN, 09°07Ј30ЉW, The extent of biodegradation of each compound was measured from the normalized peak area of the target analyte referred to that obtained from the same compound in the control sample (2,28). The peak areas of the target analytes were measured in the reconstructed ion chromatograms at m/z 85 for aliphatics and at the corresponding molecular ion for the aromatics as described elsewhere (16).…”

Section: Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Culture-independent and -dependent analyses showed that Actinobacteria, mainly Rhodococcus species, was the key alkane-degrading group of bacteria. Rhodococcus has been associated with the degradation of n-alkanes up to C 36 (65) and branched alkanes (64), which are particularly abundant in the Prestige fuel (16). It is well known that Rhodococcus is a genus with remarkable metabolic diversity (36) and is able to produce biosurfactants which can enhance not only the bioavailability of fuel components but also the growth of other degrading bacteria (26,47).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacterial Communities from Shoreline Environments (Costa da Morte, Northwestern Spain) Affected by the Prestige Oil Spill

Alonso-Gutierrez

Figueras

Albaigés

et al. 2009

Self Cite

132

The bacterial communities in two different shoreline matrices, rocks and sand, from the Costa da Morte, northwestern Spain, were investigated 12 months after being affected by the Prestige oil spill. Culture-based and culture-independent approaches were used to compare the bacterial diversity present in these environments with that at a nonoiled site. A long-term effect of fuel on the microbial communities in the oiled sand and rock was suggested by the higher proportion of alkane and polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) degraders and the differences in denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis patterns compared with those of the reference site. Members of the classes Alphaproteobacteria and Actinobacteria were the prevailing groups of bacteria detected in both matrices, although the sand bacterial community exhibited higher species richness than the rock bacterial community did. Culture-dependent and -independent approaches suggested that the genus Rhodococcus could play a key role in the in situ degradation of the alkane fraction of the Prestige fuel together with other members of the suborder Corynebacterineae. Moreover, other members of this suborder, such as Mycobacterium spp., together with Sphingomonadaceae bacteria (mainly Lutibacterium anuloederans), were related as well to the degradation of the aromatic fraction of the Prestige fuel. The multiapproach methodology applied in the present study allowed us to assess the complexity of autochthonous microbial communities related to the degradation of heavy fuel from the Prestige and to isolate some of their components for a further physiological study. Since several Corynebacterineae members related to the degradation of alkanes and PAHs were frequently detected in this and other supralittoral environments affected by the Prestige oil spill along the northwestern Spanish coast, the addition of mycolic acids to bioremediation amendments is proposed to favor the presence of these degraders in long-term fuel pollution-affected areas with similar characteristics.