Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Biodegradation and metabolic pathway of sulfamethoxazole by a novel strain Acinetobacter sp.

  • Environmental biotechnology
  • Published:
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In this study, a novel strain capable of degrading sulfamethoxazole (SMX) was isolated and identified as Acinetobacter sp. The effect of influencing factors, such as initial SMX concentration (5–240 mg/L), temperature (15–35 °C), and pH (5–7), on SMX degradation was investigated. The results showed that when the initial SMX concentration was in the range of 5–240, the removal efficiency was 100%. The optimal condition for SMX biodegradation and microbial growth was determined to be 25 °C and pH = 7.0 in terms of the removal efficiencies of SMX and total organic carbon (TOC). Four metabolite compounds were detected during the process of SMX biodegradation, and the degradation pathways were tentatively proposed. In summary, Acinetobacter sp. was highly efficient in mineralizing SMX, which has the potential to be used for degrading SMX in water and wastewater.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Blair B, Nikolaus A, Hedman C, Klaper R, Grundl T (2015) Evaluating the degradation, sorption, and negative mass balances of pharmaceuticals and personal care products during wastewater treatment. Chemosphere 134:395–401

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bouju H, Ricken B, Beffa T, Corvini PF, Kolvenbach BA (2012) Isolation of bacterial strains capable of sulfamethoxazole mineralization from an acclimated membrane bioreactor. Appl Environ Microbiol 78:5550–5558

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fischer K, Majewsky M (2014) Cometabolic degradation of organic wastewater micropollutants by activated sludge and sludge-inherent microorganisms. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 98:6583–6597

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • García-Galán MJ, Díaz-Cruz MS, Barceló D (2011) Occurrence of sulfonamide residues along the Ebro river basin: removal in wastewater treatment plants and environmental impact assessment. Environ Int 37:462–473

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gibs J, Heckathorn HA, Meyer MT, Klapinski FR, Alebus M, Lippincott RL (2013) Occurrence and partitioning of antibiotic compounds found in the water column and bottom sediments from a stream receiving two wastewater treatment plant effluents in Northern New Jersey, 2008. Sci Total Environ 458–460:107–116

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Herzog B, Lemmer H, Horn H, Müller E (2013) Characterization of pure cultures isolated from sulfamethoxazole-acclimated activated sludge with respect to taxonomic identification and sulfamethoxazole biodegradation potential. BMC Microbiol 13:276–285

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jiang B, Li A, Cui D, Cai R, Ma F, Wang Y (2014) Biodegradation and metabolic pathway of sulfamethoxazole by Pseudomonas psychrophila HA-4, a newly isolated cold-adapted sulfamethoxazole-degrading bacterium. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 98:4671–4681

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Karthikeyan KG, Meyer MT (2006) Occurrence of antibiotics in wastewater treatment facilities in Wisconsin, USA. Sci Total Environ 361:196–207

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kasprzyk-Hordern B, Dinsdale RM, Guwy AJ (2009) The removal of pharmaceuticals, personal care products, endocrine disruptors and illicit drugs during wastewater treatment and its impact on the quality of receiving waters. Water Res 43:363–380

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Larcher S, Yargeau V (2011) Biodegradation of sulfamethoxazole by individual and mixed bacteria. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 91:211–218

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miège C, Choubert J, Ribeiro L, Eusèbe M, Coquery M (2009) Fate of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in wastewater treatment plants—conception of a database and first results. Environ Pollut 157:1721–1726

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Müller E, Schüssler W, Horn H, Lemmer H (2013) Aerobic biodegradation of the sulfonamide antibiotic sulfamethoxazole by activated sludge applied as co-substrate and sole carbon and nitrogen source. Chemosphere 92:969–978

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Reis PJ, Reis AC, Ricken B, Kolvenbach BA, Manaia CM, Corvini PF, Nunes OC (2014) Biodegradation of sulfamethoxazole and other sulfonamides by Achromobacter denitrificans PR1. J Hazard Mater 280:741–749

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ricken B, Corvini PFX, Cichocka D, Parisi M, Lenz M, Wyss D, Martínezlavanchy PM, Müller JA, Shahgaldian P, Tulli LG (2004) ipso-Hydroxylation and subsequent fragmentation: a novel microbial strategy to eliminate sulfonamide antibiotics. Appl Environ Microbiol 79:5550–5558

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rohwer F, Breitbart M, Jara J, Azam F, Knowlton N (2001) Diversity of bacteria associated with the Caribbean coral Montastraea franksi. Coral Reefs 20:85–91

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Bai ZY (2017) Fe-based catalysts for heterogeneous catalytic ozonation of emerging contaminants in water and wastewater. Chem Eng J 312:79–98

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Chu LB (2016) Irradiation treatment of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) in water and wastewater: an overview. Radiat Phys Chem 125:56–64

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Wang SZ (2016) Removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) from wastewater: a review. J Environ Manag 182:620–640

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Xu LJ (2012) Advanced oxidation processes for wastewater treatment: formation of hydroxyl radical and application. Crit Rev Environ Sci Technol 42:251–325

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Quan XC, Han LP, Qian Y, Werner H (2002a) Microbial degradation of quinoline by immobilized cells of Burkholderia pickettii. Water Res 36:2288–2296

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang JL, Quan XC, LB W, Qian Y, Werner H (2002b) Bioaugmentation as a tool to enhance the removal of refractory compound in coke plant wastewater. Process Biochem 38:777–781

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang SZ, Yang Q, Zhang LN, Wang YY (2014) Kinetics of the aerobic co-metabolism of 1, 1-dichloroethylene by Achromobacter sp.: a novel benzene-grown culture. Biotechnol Lett 36:1271–1278

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Xu W, Zhang G, Li X, Zou S, Li P, Hu Z, Li J (2007) Occurrence and elimination of antibiotics at four sewage treatment plants in the Pearl River Delta (PRD), South China. Water Res 41:4526–4534

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51338005), the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in University (IRT-13026), and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2017M610920).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Collaborative Innovation Center for Advanced Nuclear Energy Technology, INET, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, People’s Republic of China

    Shizong Wang & Jianlong Wang

  2. Beijing Key Laboratory of Radioactive Wastes Treatment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, People’s Republic of China

    Jianlong Wang

Authors
  1. Shizong Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jianlong Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jianlong Wang.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Wang, S., Wang, J. Biodegradation and metabolic pathway of sulfamethoxazole by a novel strain Acinetobacter sp.. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 102, 425–432 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-017-8562-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-017-8562-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation