1Protein Dept., Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Research Institute, Mubarak City for Scientific Research and Technology Applications, Alexandria, Egypt.
2Faculty of Education, Alexandria University, Egypt.
*E-mail: amroamara@web.de
Microbes play major role in saving our environment by degrading chemical wastes, which are toxic in their native form or modified to be toxic. The isolation of microbial strains able to degrade chemical compounds was usually from pollutant sources such as soil. In our study aerobic strains isolated from soil garden using enrichment technique were purified and rescreened for their ability to degrade PHA (Polyhydroxyalkanoate). Two of the most successful strains able to degrade both phenol and PHA were characterized by stander criteria as Alcaligenes xylosoxidans subsp. denitrificans and Citrobacter sp. PHA exodepolymerase activities were characterized and the surface of the degradable polymer being scanned using electron microscope, shows that bacterial cells tightly attached to the polymer surface during the degradation process and cause deformation for the polymer surface. We recommended using Alcaligenes xylosoxidans subsp. denitrificans and Citrobacter sp., for Phenol/PHA degradation and in other related bioremediation and biotechnological applications.
A. xylosoxidans subsp. denitrificans, C. sp., Phenol, Polyhydroxyalkanoate, depolymerase, electron microscope
