Premium
Genetic determinants of aerobic degradation of the antidepressant sertraline by Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf‐5
Author(s) -
Palanski Brad A,
Schultz Melissa M,
Strand Stephanie S,
Snider Mark J
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.25.1_supplement.924.5
Subject(s) - pseudomonas fluorescens , sertraline , catabolism , chemistry , transcriptome , biology , environmental chemistry , bacteria , gene , biochemistry , gene expression , enzyme , antidepressant , genetics , neuroscience , hippocampus
Pharmaceuticals are now a well‐recognized class of environmental contaminants that have been shown to elicit negative effects on aquatic life at environmentally relevant concentrations. Sertraline (Zoloft™) is an antidepressant that is ubiquitous in aquatic environments near wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Recently we reported the isolation of a bacterium ( Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf‐5 ) from a WWTP that co‐metabolizes sertraline with ethanol as a primary carbon source. Here we investigate the biochemical pathway by which catabolism occurs. An extraction technique for sertraline and its catabolites from bacterial liquid cultures was developed, and analysis by liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry shows that norsertraline and other catabolites are present. Currently, we are utilizing high‐throughput DNA sequencing to characterize the transcriptome when the bacterium is grown in the presence and absence of sertraline. Analysis of differential gene expression should implicate genes involved in sertraline catabolism and facilitate mechanistic studies of enzymes for which the genes code. This study will further our understanding of the function and evolution of bacterial catabolic pathways and will aid in a comprehensive assessment of the environmental effects of sertraline and its catabolites. This work was supported by a grant from HHMI through the Undergraduate Science Education Program.