Mycoremediation of Sulfamethoxazole and metabolic pathway by Aspergillus tubingensis strain

Over the last few decades sulfonamides are being prescribed on a large scale for treating human beings and livestock. Contaminants of sulfonamide antibiotics are present in various environments and these residues can enter the food web, leading to health threat. The purpose of this study was to assess sulfamethoxazole degradation using a novel strain of Aspergillus sp. and demonstrates the degradation pathway of sulfamethoxazole. To the best of our knowledge, this marks the first detailed biodegradation pathway for Aspergillus sp. AJC4 proposed. The biodegradation pattern of sulfamethoxazole was assessed using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC) and validated through Gas Chromatography Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS), Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The fungal isolate was able to degrade 99.42% of sulfamethoxazole at a concentration of 150 mg/l within 7 d. Three metabolic compounds were identified throughout the Sulfamethoxazole biodegradation process. The degradation pathway was shown to follow first order kinetics model according to the kinetics energy.