Horizontal transfer of catabolic plasmids and naphthalene biodegradation in open soil

• Published in: Microbiology (New York) Vol. 79; no. 2; pp. 184 - 190
• Main Authors: Filonov, A. E, Akhmetov, L. I, Puntus, I. F, Esikova, T. Z, Gafarov, A. B, Kosheleva, I. A, Boronin, A. M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Dordrecht : SP MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica 01-04-2010; SP MAIK Nauka/Interperiodica
• Subjects: Alcaligenes; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Experimental Articles; Life Sciences; Medical Microbiology; Microbiology; Pseudomonas; soil; plasmids; horizontal transfer; naphthalene
• ISSN: 0026-2617; 1608-3237
• DOI: 10.1134/S0026261710020098

The horizontal transfer of naphthalene biodegradation plasmids and the parallel process of its microbial degradation were studied for the first time. The tagged naphthalene-degrading strains bearing labeled biodegradation plasmids were used for the monitoring of horizontal plasmid transfer in open soil. The population kinetics of microorganisms, the survival rate and competitiveness of introduced strains, and the transfer of biodegradation plasmids to indigenous strains were investigated. The transfer of the labeled plasmid pNF142::TnMod-OTc to the introduced plasmid-free recipient P. putida KT2442 and to indigenous soil microorganisms of the genus Pseudomonas was shown both under selection pressure (in the presence of naphthalene) and in its absence. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that the soil strains that had acquired plasmids were close to the species P. lini, P. frederiksbergensis, P. jessenii, P. graminis, P. putida, and P. alcaligenes. Thus, direct evidence of dissemination of the naphthalene biodegradation plasmids in microbial populations in open soil under selective and nonselective conditions has been obtained.