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Effect of ferrihydrite on 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene biotransformation by an aerobic yeast

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Abstract

This study investigated the impact of ferrihydrite on the pathway and rate of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) transformation by Yarrowia lipolytica AN-L15. The presence of ferrihydrite in the culture medium decreased the rate of TNT biotransformation but resulted in the accumulation of the same TNT metabolites as in the absence of ferrihydrite, albeit at slightly different concentrations. Transformation products observed included aromatic ring reduction products, such as hydride-Meisenheimer complexes, and nitro group reduction products, such as hydroxylamino- and amino-dinitrotoluenes. Independently of the presence of ferrihydrite the subsequent degradation of the hydride complex(es) resulted in the release of nitrite followed by its conversion to nitrate and nitric oxide at the low pH values observed during yeast cultivation. Nitric oxide generation was ascertained by electron spin resonance spectroscopy. In addition, increased Fe3+-reduction was observed in the presence of TNT and Y. lipolytica. This study demonstrates that in the presence of yeast cells, TNT-hydride complexes were formed at approximately the same level as in the presence of ferrihydrite, opening up the possibility of aromatic ring cleavage, instead of promoting the production of potentially toxic nitro group reduction products in the presence of iron minerals.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (2010–2011) and partially supported by a grant “Alğarış” from the Republic of Tatarstan (Russia). Partial financial support was provided by the US Department of Defense, Army Research Office, Grant No. DAAD19-03-C-0103 and the Office of Science (BER), U.S. Department of Energy, Grant No. DE-FG02-03ER63582. The authors acknowledge funding for the establishment of the Environmental and Biofilm Mass Spectrometry Facility through the Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) Contract No. W911NF0510255. We gratefully acknowledge Alexander Rodionov (Institute of Physics, Kazan Federal University) for ESR spectroscopy assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, ul., Kremlyovskaya 18, Kazan, 420008, The Republic of Tatarstan, Russia

    Irina V. Khilyas & Ayrat M. Ziganshin

  2. Department of Chemistry and Life Science, United States Military Academy, West Point, NY, 10996, USA

    Andy J. Pannier

  3. Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, 59717, USA

    Andy J. Pannier & Robin Gerlach

  4. Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, 59717, USA

    Robin Gerlach

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  1. Irina V. Khilyas
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  2. Ayrat M. Ziganshin
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  3. Andy J. Pannier
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  4. Robin Gerlach
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Correspondence to Ayrat M. Ziganshin or Robin Gerlach.

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Khilyas, I.V., Ziganshin, A.M., Pannier, A.J. et al. Effect of ferrihydrite on 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene biotransformation by an aerobic yeast. Biodegradation 24, 631–644 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10532-012-9611-4

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