1,4-Dioxane degradation characteristics of Rhodococcus aetherivorans JCM 14343

Rhodococcus aetherivorans JCM 14343 can degrade 1,4-dioxane as a sole carbon and energy source. This study aimed to characterize this 1,4-dioxane degradation ability further, and assess the potential use of the strain for 1,4-dioxane removal in industrial wastewater. Strain JCM 14343 was able to degrade 1,4-dioxane inducibly, and its 1,4-dioxane degradation was also induced by tetrahydrofuran and 1,4-butanediol. The demonstration that 1,4-butanediol not only induced but also enhanced 1,4-dioxane degradation was a novel finding of this study. Although strain JCM 14343 appeared not to be an effective 1,4-dioxane degrader considering the maximum specific 1,4-dioxane degradation rate (0.0073 mg-dioxane/mg-protein/h), half saturation concentration (59.2 mg/L), and cell yield (0.031 mg-protein/mg-1,4-dioxane), the strain could degrade over 1100 mg/L of 1,4-dioxane and maintain its degradation activity at a wide range of temperature (5–40 °C) and pH (4–9) conditions. This suggests the usefulness of strain JCM 14343 in 1,4-dioxane treatment under acidic and cold conditions. In addition, 1,4-dioxane degradation experiments in the presence of ethylene glycol (EG) or other cyclic ethers revealed that 1,4-dioxane degradation by strain JCM 14343 was inhibited in the presence of other cyclic ethers, but not by EG, suggesting certain applicability of strain JCM 14343 for industrial wastewater treatment.