Fermentation products of solvent tolerant marine bacterium Moraxella spp. MB1 and its biotechnological applications in salicylic acid bioconversion

PLoS One. 2013 Dec 31;8(12):e83647. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0083647. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

As part of a proactive approach to environmental protection, emerging issues with potential impact on the environment is the subject of ongoing investigation. One emerging area of environmental research concerns pharmaceuticals like salicylic acid, which is the main metabolite of various analgesics including aspirin. It is a common component of sewage effluent and also an intermediate in the degradation pathway of various aromatic compounds which are introduced in the marine environment as pollutants. In this study, biotransformation products of salicylic acid by seaweed, Bryopsis plumosa, associated marine bacterium, Moraxella spp. MB1, have been investigated. Phenol, conjugates of phenol and hydroxy cinnamic acid derivatives (coumaroyl, caffeoyl, feruloyl and trihydroxy cinnamyl) with salicylic acid (3-8) were identified as the bioconversion products by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. These results show that the microorganism do not degrade phenolic acid but catalyses oxygen dependent transformations without ring cleavage. The degradation of salicylic acid is known to proceed either via gentisic acid pathway or catechol pathway but this is the first report of biotransformation of salicylic acid into cinnamates, without ring cleavage. Besides cinnamic acid derivatives (9-12), metabolites produced by the bacterium include antimicrobial indole (13) and β-carbolines, norharman (14), harman (15) and methyl derivative (16), which are beneficial to the host and the environment.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aquatic Organisms / metabolism
  • Biodegradation, Environmental
  • Biotechnology
  • Biotransformation
  • Fermentation
  • Metabolic Networks and Pathways
  • Moraxella / genetics
  • Moraxella / isolation & purification
  • Moraxella / metabolism*
  • Salicylic Acid / metabolism*
  • Seaweed / microbiology
  • Solvents
  • Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / metabolism

Substances

  • Solvents
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical
  • Salicylic Acid

Grants and funding

This work was supported by NIO-CSIR. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript.