The roles of bacterial biofilm and oxidizing enzymes in the biodegradation of plastic by the bacterium Rhodococcus ruber (C208)

Synthetic polymers such as polyethylene are amongst the most durable plastic materials and, therefore are resistant to natural biodegradation resulting in their accumulation in the environment posing a global hazard. We have carried out a two-step enrichment procedure aimed at the isolation of polyethylene-degrading bacteria from soil. The initial enrichment was carried out in soil and the second, in a liquid mineral medium supplemented with linear low-density polyethylene (LDPE; MW 191,000) as the sole carbon source. UV-photooxidation may enhance biodegradation by the formation of carbonyl residues that can be utilized by microorganisms. This screening gave rise to several bacterial strains that were capable of degrading polyethylene. One of these strains (C208), identified as the actinomycete Rhodococcus ruber, colonized the polyethylene producing a biofilm which eventually lead to the degradation of the polyethylene. Adherence and colonization of planktonic C208 cells to the polyethylene surface occurred within minutes from exposure to the polyolefin. This resulted in formation of an initial biofilm that differentiated into cell-aggregation-forming microcolonies. Further organization yielded three-dimensional sessile structures as the mature biofilm. The ratio between the population densities, of the biofilm and planktonic, was about 60:1, indicating a high preference for the biofilm mode of growth. Analysis of the extra-cellular polymeric substances (EPS) in the biofilm of C208 revealed that the polysaccharides level was up to 2.5 folds higher than that of the protein. Surprisingly, the EPS also contained DNA that is actively excreted from live bacterial cells. This is supported by the reduction in biofilm content (but not in viability) following addition, of DNase 1 and RNAse A. The biofilm showed a high viability even after 60 days of incubation in a carbon free medium. This durability of the biofilm, can be attributed to biodegradation of polyethylene. A novel method for isolating mutants impaired in their production of biofilms (but not in their growth performance) was developed and utilized to isolate such mutants. Indeed, combining the Crystal Violet staining with confocal microscopy we were able to show that such mutants, not only contains reduced amounts of biofilm but also alters biofilm architecture. The above characterization of wild type and mutant strains can be utilized to determine the role of biofilm on the biodegradation of polyethylene. C208 produces laccase (phenol oxidase). This is an oxidizing enzyme that requires copper for induction and activity. In the presence of copper the biodegradation of mineral oil and of polyethylene, by C208, increased by up to 25% and 100%, respectively. Treatment of polyethylene films with a cell free-extract of laccase resulted in an increase of more then 40% in the carbonyl peak (indicating oxidation) as measured by FTIR. Furthermore, during 2 weeks of incubation, with C208 laccase, the molecular weight of polyethylene was reduced by 25%. It seems that laccase alone could not account for all degrading activity and, presumably, more enzyme(s) capable of degrading olefins are yet to be discovered.