Alkane Biodegradation
R. A. Kerr Science 329, 734-735 (2010)
Alkanes
Saturated hydrocarbons
Large fraction of crude oil
Solubility decreases with
chain length (straight
chains)
Can also be branched
chains or rings
Branched chains are more
difficult to degrade than
straight chains
Melting
Solubili at 20
point
ty
C
[C]
Methane
Boiling
Formul
point
a
[C]
CH4
-162
Ethane
C2H6
-89
-183
Propane
C3H8
-42
-188
gas
Butane
C4H10
-138
gas
Hexane
C6H14
69
-95
Octane
C8H18
126
-57
liquid
Nonane
C9H20
151
-54
liquid
Decane
C10H22
174
-30
Dodecane
C12H26
216
-10
Hexadecan
C16H34
e
287
19
C20H42
343
37
450
66
solid
525
82
solid
575
91
solid
Alkane
Icosane
Triacontan
C30H62
e
Tetraconta
C40H82
ne
Pentaconta
C50H102
-182
gas
63.7
12.3
0.05
gas
liquid
liquid
liquid
5.2 x 10
-5
3.1 x 10
-7
liquid
solid
n-alkane aerobic degradation
pathways
Diterminal oxidation
Terminal oxidation
Subterminal oxidation
Callaghan 2006, Biodegradation 1990 1:79-92
Aerobic degradation
[Link]
Oxygen-dependent reactions
Formation of fatty acids, followed by -oxidation
Biosurfactants may be required before degradation can begin
Branched
alkanes
More difficult to
degrade than nalkanes
Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 2000;66:4462-4467
Alkane biodegradation-anaerobic
Environ. Microbiol. 2009 11(10):2477-2490
-oxidation
[Link]
Bioremediation
Bioremediation using
biological systems to treat
contaminated sites
Biodegradation biological
activity that results in the break
down of a specific contaminant
Bioaugmentation adding
biodegrading organisms to the
contaminated site (not
genetically manipulated)
[Link]
Biostimulation adding
nutrients like nitrogen or
phosphorus in order to
stimulate microbial activity
Case study: Deepwater Horizon
Louisiana crude oil
Predominantly alkanes,
lower concentrations of
aromatics
Oil in a large plume near
the wellhead, 1 km depth
Also surface oil, mobilized
oil, reaching
shoreline/sensitive
wetland areas
[Link]
e_drilling_unit_on_fire_2010.jpg April 21, 2010
[Link]
Deepwater Horizon-physical/chemical
remediation
Burning not environmentally smart
greenhouse gases, toxic chemicals
released into the atmosphere
[Link]
catastrophe-in-the-gulf-2/
Physical removal-does not remove
all of the oil; there is water
recovered as well, would need to be
separated from the oil
Chemical dispersion
[Link]
/What_Is_The_Corexit_Dispersant.ht
ml
[Link]
Oil washing up in wetland area
Adding dispersant to gushing oil
E. Kintisch Science 329, 735-736 (2010)
Studying the spill
Sample collection
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
Biodegradation concerns
Bioavailability:
Bacteria are located at the oil-water interface, not inside the oil
droplets
Smaller droplets (dispersed oil) give more surface area to
increase biodegradation.
Explosions in bacterial growth would deplete
available nutrients and ultimately slow
degradation
Oxygen consumption possible dead zones?
Sedimentation deposition in anaerobic zones in
sediment
[Link]
print=yes
Oil-degrading microbes
Image from Hoi-Ying Holman
group)
Hazen et al. (2010) found 2-fold
higher cell densities within the plume.
Enrichment in plume for
Oceanospirillales
Some oxygen depletion in the plume,
not enough to create anoxic dead
zones
Enough oxygen loss to indicate
aerobic activity
Increased degradation genes in plume
Valentine et al. (2010) found oxygen
depletion in the plume to be driven by
ethane and propane metabolism
Oil consuming bacteria on oil droplets, 1500x magnification Johannes Zedelius, MPI Bremen
Results
[Link]
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