Abstract
SummaryBenzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) contamination is a serious threat to public health and the environment, and therefore, there is an urgent need to detect its presence in nature. The use of whole‐cell reporters is an efficient, easy‐to‐use and low‐cost approach to detect and follow contaminants outside specialized laboratories; this is especially important in oil spills that are frequent in marine environments. The aim of this study is the construction of a bioreporter system and its comparison and validation for the specific detection of monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in different host bacteria and environmental samples. Our bioreporter system is based on the two component regulatory system TodS–TodT of P. putida DOT‐T1E, and the P todX promoter fused to the GFP protein as the reporter protein. For the construction of different biosensors, this bioreporter was transferred into three different bacterial strains isolated from three different environments, and their performance was measured. Validation of the biosensors on water samples spiked with petrol, diesel and crude oil on contaminated waters from oil spills and on contaminated soils demonstrated that they can be used in mapping and monitoring some BTEX compounds (specifically benzene, toluene and two xylene isomers). Validation of biosensors is an important issue for the integration of these devices into pollution‐control programmes.
Highlights
Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) contamination of soils and waters is a serious threat to public health and the environment, and it is essential to detect its presence in nature and to control its biodegradation in polluted sites with reliable tools (Heitzer and Sayler, 1993; Alberici et al, 2002; Behzadian et al, 2011; Wiwanitkit, 2014)
The use of whole-cell biosensors is an efficient, easy-to-use and low-cost approach to monitor contaminants in the environment (Belkin, 2003) that can be used outside specialized laboratories; this is especially important in oil spills that are frequent in marine environments in remote locations (Doerffer, 2013)
Our bioreporter system is based on the two component regulatory system TodS–TodT of P. putida DOT-T1E, and the PtodX promoter fused to the GFP protein as a reporter protein
Summary
Toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) contamination of soils and waters is a serious threat to public health and the environment, and it is essential to detect its presence in nature and to control its biodegradation in polluted sites with reliable tools (Heitzer and Sayler, 1993; Alberici et al, 2002; Behzadian et al, 2011; Wiwanitkit, 2014). The construction of bioreporters is based on a natural regulatory circuit composed of a transcription regulator and a promoter or operator which is combined with a promoter-less gene that encodes an measurable protein (the reporter protein). The activation of the promoter by the transcription regulator in the presence of a specific chemical compound leads to the expression of the reporter gene. Environmental applications for bioreporters and their advantages have been discussed by Harms et al (2006)
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