Identification and environmental distribution of dcpA, which encodes the reductive dehalogenase catalyzing the dichloroelimination of 1,2-dichloropropane to propene in organohalide-respiring Chloroflexi

Elizabeth Padilla-Crespo, Jun Yan, Cynthia Swift, Darlene D. Wagner, Karuna Chourey, Robert L. Hettich, Kirsti M. Ritalahti, Frank E. Löffler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

47 Scopus citations

Abstract

Dehalococcoides mccartyi strains KS and RC grow with 1,2-dichloropropane (1,2-D) as an electron acceptor in enrichment cultures derived from hydrocarbon-contaminated and pristine river sediments, respectively. Transcription, expression, enzymatic, and PCR analyses implicated the reductive dehalogenase gene dcpA in 1,2-D dichloroelimination to propene and inorganic chloride. Quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) analyses demonstrated a D. mccartyi cell increase during growth with 1,2-D and suggested that both D. mccartyi strains carried a single dcpA gene copy per genome. D. mccartyi strain RC and strain KS produced 1.8×107±0.1×107 and 1.4×107±0.5×107 cells per μmol of propene formed, respectively. The dcpA gene was identified in 1,2-D-to-propene-dechlorinating microcosms established with sediment samples collected from different geographical locations in Europe and North and South America. Clone library analysis revealed two distinct dcpA phylogenetic clusters, both of which were captured by the dcpA gene-targeted qPCR assay, suggesting that the qPCR assay is useful for site assessment and bioremediation monitoring at 1,2-D-contaminated sites.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)808-818
Number of pages11
JournalApplied and Environmental Microbiology
Volume80
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2014

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