Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.1021/acs.est.4c13917
Title (Primary) High-throughput screening of microbial reductive dechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls: Patterns in reactivity and pathways
Author Xu, G.; He, H.; Tang, D.; Lu, Q.; Mai, B.; He, Z.; Adrian, L. ORCID logo ; He, J.; Dolfing, J.; Wang, S.
Source Titel Environmental Science & Technology
Year 2025
Department MEB
Volume 59
Issue 15
Page From 7712
Page To 7721
Language englisch
Topic T7 Bioeconomy
Supplements https://pubs.acs.org/doi/suppl/10.1021/acs.est.4c13917/suppl_file/es4c13917_si_001.pdf
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/suppl/10.1021/acs.est.4c13917/suppl_file/es4c13917_si_002.xlsx
Keywords reductive dehalogenation; polychlorinated biphenyls; high-throughput screening; reactivity; pathways; bioremediation
Abstract Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are pervasive pollutants that pose risks to ecosystems and human health. Microbial reductive dehalogenation plays crucial roles in attenuating PCBs, but comprehensive insights into PCB dechlorination pathways, reactivity, and governing factors are limited by the vast number of congeners and costly experimental approaches. We address this challenge by establishing a high-throughput in vitro assay approach of reductive dehalogenation (HINVARD), which increases dechlorination test throughput by 30-fold and enhances reagents and cell utilization efficiency by over 10-fold compared to conventional assay methods. Using HINVARD, we screened 61 PCB congeners across 9 enrichment cultures and 3 Dehalococcoides isolates, identifying active dechlorination of 31–44 congeners. Results showed that PCB congener properties (chlorine substitution patterns, steric hindrance, and solubility) primarily determine the dechlorination potential, leading to consistent reactivity trends across cultures. In contrast, different organohalide-respiring bacteria catalyzed distinct dechlorination pathways, preferentially removing para- or meta-chlorines. Structural modeling of reductive dehalogenases revealed unique binding orientations governing substrate specificity, offering molecular insights into these pathways. This study provides a high-efficiency strategy for investigating microbial reductive dehalogenation, yielding the first comprehensive understanding of PCB dechlorination patterns and mechanisms. These findings guide the design of tailored microbial consortia for effective PCB bioremediation.
Persistent UFZ Identifier https://www.ufz.de/index.php?en=20939&ufzPublicationIdentifier=30710
Xu, G., He, H., Tang, D., Lu, Q., Mai, B., He, Z., Adrian, L., He, J., Dolfing, J., Wang, S. (2025):
High-throughput screening of microbial reductive dechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls: Patterns in reactivity and pathways
Environ. Sci. Technol. 59 (15), 7712 - 7721 10.1021/acs.est.4c13917