M&E Papers in Press. Published online on March 23, 2012 doi:10.1264/jsme2.ME11357 1 2 Revised ME11357 3 4 Isolation and Characterization of Novel Sulfate-Reducing Bacterium Capable of 5 Anaerobic Degradation of p-Xylene 6 * 7 YURIKO HIGASHIOKA, HISAYA KOJIMA , AND MANABU FUKUI 8 9 The Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, Nishi 8, Kita 19, 10 Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-0819, Japan 11 Proofs 12 (Received December 21, 2011-Accepted February 2, 2012) 13 View 14 Running headline: p-Xylene-Degrading Sulfate Reducer 15 16 * Corresponding author. E-mail:
[email protected]; Tel: 17 +81-11-706-5460;Advance Fax: +81-11-706-5460. 18 19 20 21 1 Copyright 2012 by the Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology / the Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology 22 A novel strain of p-xylene-degrading sulfate reducer was isolated in pure culture. 23 Strain PP31 was obtained from a p-xylene-degrading enrichment culture established 24 from polluted marine sediment. Analyses of the 16S rRNA gene and two functional 25 genes involved in sulfate respiration and anaerobic degradation of aromatic compounds 26 revealed that the isolate was closely related to members of the genus Desulfosarcina. 27 Strain PP31 was capable of growing on p-xylene under sulfate-reducing conditions, and 28 the ratio of generated sulfide and consumed p-xylene suggested complete oxidation by 29 the novel isolate. The strain could not grow on benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, 30 m-xylene o-xylene, or n-hexane as an electron donor. Strain PP31 is the first isolated 31 bacterium that degrades p-xylene anaerobically, and will be useful to understanding the 32 mechanism of anaerobic degradation of p-xylene.