Biotechnology Letters, Vol.38, No.11, 1893-1901, 2016
Recombinant protein, AlnA, combined with transgenic alfalfa remediates polychlorinated biphenyl-contaminated soils: efficiency and rhizosphere microbial community response
To investigate the remediation efficiency of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-contaminated soils by the combination of a bioemulsifying protein, AlnA, and alfalfa expressing bphC. The combination of AlnA and transgenic alfalfa promoted PCB soil remediation through the pot experiments. The removal rates of tri-PCBs (PCB 16/PCB 32 and PCB 31/PCB 28) and tetra-PCB (PCB 49) in transgenic alfalfa/AlnA treatment were 3.6-, 1.1-, and 2-fold higher than in transgenic alfalfa treatment alone. Analysis of gene copy number revealed that the PCB-degrading gene, bphC, of Pseudomonas-like bacterial populations in transgenic alfalfa/AlnA treatment increased 1.5-fold compared with that of unplanted soils. Bacterial community Illumina sequencing showed Pseudomonas, Arthrobacter, and Sphingomonas positively correlated with the removal rates of PCBs. PCB removal was unrelated to bacterial community diversity but positively correlated with their specific degraders and bphC gene expression.
Keywords:AlnA;bioemulsifying protein;Illumina sequencing;Polychlorinated biphenyl;Transgenic alfalfa