Biodegradation of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl by bacteria isolated from sludge

A mixed bacterial population was isolated using enrichment in a basal medium containing increasing amounts of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl as a sole carbon source from sludge that had been exposed to fenoxaprop-p-ethyl production wastewater for about 2 years. Eight kinds of isolates could utilize fenoxaprop-p-ethyl, but only one was identified belonging to genus Alcaligenes, named Alcaligenes sp. H. In pure culture, there was 45.8, 66.0 and 69.5% loss of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl (initial concentration: 100, 50, 25 ppm, respectively) as the sole carbon source with biodegradation by Alcaligenes sp. H and fenoxaprop-p-ethyl degradation kinetics obeyed the first-order kinetics, the same as the fenoxaprop-p-ethyl biodegradation kinetics in soil. At least five degradation products of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl biodegradation by Alcaligenes sp. H and two degradation products of fenoxaprop-p-ethyl biodegradation by Huv separated by HPTLC. It is possible that the fenoxaprop-p-ethyl biodegradation by Alcaligenes sp. H includes the same pathway as that by Huv comparing with the Rf.