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Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Strain Ma01 Aerobically Metabolizes The Aminodinitrotoluenes Produced By 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene Nitro Group Reduction, Mark A. Alvarez, Christopher Kitts, James L. Botsford, Pat J. Unkefer

Biological Sciences

Many microbes reduce the nitro substituents of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), producing aminodinitrotoluenes (ADNTs). These compounds are recalcitrant to further breakdown and are acutely toxic. In a search for organisms capable of metabolizing ADNTs, a bacterial strain was isolated for the ability to use 2-aminobenzoate (anthranilate) as sole C-source. This isolate, Pseudomonas aeruginosa MAO1, metabolized TNT by first reducing one nitro group to form either 2-amino-4,6-dinitrotoluene (2ADNT) or 4 -amino-2,6-dinitrotoluene(4ADNT). However, strain MA01 was distinct from other TNT-reducing organisms in that it transformed these compounds into highly polar metabolites through an 02-dependent process. Strain MAOl was able to cometabolize TNT, 2ADNT, and …