Biotransformation of chloramphenicol by enriched bacterial consortia and the newly isolated bacterial strain Bordetella sp. C3: Detoxifying biotransformation pathway and its potential application in agriculture

[Display omitted] •Two highly efficient CAP-degrading consortia were obtained after acclimation.•Bordetella sp. C3 was isolated and can degrade 85.7 % 10 mg/L CAP within 9 days.•Five putative CAP biodegradation pathways identified as a detoxification process.•ARG, HMRG and plant growth-promoting functional genes were identified in C3. Limited sources of consortia/pure cultures that degrade chloramphenicol (CAP) and the incomplete biodegradation profiles of CAP hinder the remediation of CAP pollution. In this study, two CAP-degrading consortia (designated as CM and PM) were obtained after long-term acclimation, and Alcaligenaceae and Enterobacteriaceae enriched in CM and PM, respectively. Notably, Bordetella sp. C3, a new isolate belonging to the family Alcaligenaceae, was isolated from CM and capable of degrading 85.7 % 10 mg/L CAP at 30 ℃ and pH 7 in 10 d. The biotransformation of CAP by Bordetella sp. C3 was proposed as a detoxification process, including a novel initial degradation pathway: dechlorination of CAP into AP. Strain C3 can also function as a plant growth-promoting bacterium that solubilizes inorganic phosphate and produces siderophores and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). This study expands our knowledge of the migration and transformation pathways of CAP and microbial community profiles during acclimatization.