Anaerobic taurine oxidation: a novel reaction by a nitrate-reducing Alcaligenes sp

Faculty for Biology, The University, D-78434 Konstanz, Germany Author for correspondence: Alasdair M. Cook. Tel: + 49 7531 88 4247. Fax: +49 7531 88 2966. e-mail: Alasdair.Cook@uni-konstanz.de ABSTRACT Enrichment cultures were prepared under strictly anoxic conditions in medium representing fresh water and containing an organosulfonate as electron donor and carbon source, and nitrate as electron acceptor. The inoculum was from the anaerobic digestor of two communal sewage works. The natural organosulfonates 2-aminoethanesulfonate (taurine), DL -2-amino-3-sulfopropionate (cysteate) and 2-hydroxyethanesulfonate (isethionate) all gave positive enrichments, whereas unsubstituted alkanesulfonates, such as methanesulfonate and arenesulfonates, gave no enrichment. Two representative enrichments were used to obtain pure cultures, and strains NKNTAU (utilizing taurine) and NKNIS (utilizing isethionate) were isolated. Strain NKNTAU was examined in detail. Out of 18 tested organosulfonates, it utilized only one, taurine, and was identified as a novel Alcaligenes sp., a facultatively anaerobic bacterium. Carbon from taurine was converted to cell material and carbon dioxide. The amino group was released as ammonium ion and the sulfonate moiety was recovered as sulfate. Nitrate was reduced to nitrogen gas. Keywords: desulfonation, taurine, nitrate-reducing bacteria, anaerobic degradation, anaerobic desulfonation