Leveraging molecular docking to understand Congo red degradation by Staphylococcus caprae MB400

Area of Science:

• Environmental Microbiology
• Bioremediation
• Dye Degradation

Background:

• Congo red (CR) is a genotoxic, sulfonated azo dye causing significant environmental pollution.
• Azo dyes are widely used in industries and pose challenges due to their persistence and toxicity.
• Bioremediation offers a sustainable approach to address dye pollution.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential of Staphylococcus caprae MB400 for degrading Congo red.
• To analyze the decolourization efficiency and identify degradation products.
• To elucidate the mechanism of azo bond reduction by the azoreductase enzyme.

Main Methods:

• Bacterial isolation and identification using 16S rRNA gene sequencing.
• Dye decolourization assays in liquid culture.
• Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) for metabolite analysis.
• Azoreductase enzyme structure prediction and molecular docking.

Main Results:

• Staphylococcus caprae MB400 achieved approximately 96.0% Congo red decolourization at 100 µg/ml and pH 7 within 24 hours.
• FTIR analysis confirmed the degradation of the dye into metabolites.
• Molecular docking identified 12 critical residues in the azoreductase enzyme involved in dye binding and reduction.

Conclusions:

• Staphylococcus caprae MB400 is a potent agent for the bioremediation of Congo red.
• The study provides insights into the enzymatic mechanism of azo dye degradation.
• This research contributes to developing biological solutions for azo dye pollution control.