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Haloalkalitolerant Nitrile-Utilizing Rhodococcus Strains Promote the Biodegradation of Nitrile-Butadiene Rubber
G A Syrovatskaya1, A Yu Maksimov1,2, O V Korotchenkova3
1Laboratory of Molecular Biotechnology, Institute of Ecology and Genetics of Microorganisms Ural Branch Russian Academy of Sciences, Perm Federal Research Center, Perm, Russia.
Abstract:
Environmental pollution from polymers is reaching alarming levels. Nitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR), widely used in medical glove manufacturing, contributes significantly to plastic and microplastic pollution. Nitrile gloves have become a major component of COVID-19 pandemic-related waste. In this study, we demonstrated the ability of haloalkalitolerant, nitrile-utilizing Rhodococcus qingshengii IEGM 1416 and R. erythropolis IEGM 1417 to grow on a mineral medium containing NBR as the sole nitrogen source. Scanning electron microscopy and colony-forming unit (CFU) counting confirmed the development of Rhodococcus biofilms on this material, representing the first step in polymer biodegradation. After UV and freeze-thaw pretreatment of NBR, biofilm biomass for R. qingshengii IEGM 1416 and R. erythropolis IEGM 1417 reached (7.28 ± 0.48) × 106 and (6.27 ± 0.72) × 106 CFU/cm2, respectively. Using attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, we identified structural changes in NBR following UV/freeze-thaw treatment and subsequent 1-month cultivation. The appearance of amide groups in the polymer structure resulted from the transformation of nitrile groups by bacterial nitrile hydratases. Oxidative aging of the material was observed after both UV irradiation and bacterial growth; notably, the effect varied between the different sides of the NBR due to structural heterogeneity. Enzymes from haloalkalitolerant nitrile-utilizing rhodococci induce chemical changes in NBR, corresponding to the initial stages of backbone oxidation and nitrile group transformation.
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