Biodegradation of chloromethane by Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain NB1 under nitrate-reducing and aerobic conditions.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain NB1 uses chloromethane (CM) as its sole source of carbon and energy under nitrate-reducing and aerobic conditions. The observed yield of NB1 was 0.20 (+/-0.06) (mean +/- standard deviation) and 0.28 (+/-0.01) mg of total suspended solids (TSS) mg of CM(-1) under anoxic and aerobic conditions, respectively. The stoichiometry of nitrate consumption was 0.75 (+/-0.10) electron equivalents (eeq) of NO(3)(-) per eeq of CM, which is consistent with the yield when it is expressed on an eeq basis. Nitrate was stoichiometrically converted to dinitrogen (0.51 +/- 0.05 mol of N(2) per mol of NO(3)(-)). The stoichiometry of oxygen use with CM (0.85 +/- 0.21 eeq of O(2) per eeq of CM) was also consistent with the aerobic yield. Stoichiometric release of chloride and minimal accumulation of soluble metabolic products (measured as chemical oxygen demand) following CM consumption, under anoxic and aerobic conditions, indicated complete biodegradation of CM. Acetylene did not inhibit CM use under aerobic conditions, implying that a monooxygenase was not involved in initiating aerobic CM metabolism. Under anoxic conditions, the maximum specific CM utilization rate (k) for NB1 was 5.01 (+/-0.06) micromol of CM mg of TSS(-1) day(-1), the maximum specific growth rate (micro(max)) was 0.0506 day(-1), and the Monod half-saturation coefficient (K(s)) was 0.067 (+/-0.004) microM. Under aerobic conditions, the values for k, micro(max), and K(s) were 10.7 (+/-0.11) micromol of CM mg of TSS(-1) day(-1), 0.145 day(-1), and 0.93 (+/-0.042) microM, respectively, indicating that NB1 used CM faster under aerobic conditions. Strain NB1 also grew on methanol, ethanol, and acetate under denitrifying and aerobic conditions, but not on methane, formate, or dichloromethane.