Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are stable organic molecules that do not degrade readily and are attracted to hydrophobic tissue in plants and animals where they accumulate. Exposure and accumulation of PCBs within tissue is a known carcinogenic event. A major public health initiative is to find an effective and efficient method to degrade PCBs, so they are unable to harm plant, animal, and human life. The bacterial <i>Psuedomonas </i>sp has been found to degrade PCBs, but a byproduct of the degradation is the toxin protoanemonin. The presence of the toxin immediately kills the bacteria. The enzyme dienelactone hydrolase (DLH) has 1% efficiency against protoanemonin. Using protein modelling, amino acids at points of interest have been identified and will be mutated with directed evolution techniques. Protoanemonin is organically synthesized using the published five step process and is used in kinetic assays to identify mutants with higher activity than the wild type. Mutation of the dienelactone hydrolase enzyme is aimed to increase the efficiency against protoanemonin in the degradation pathway of PCBs in the attempt to find a viable form of bioremediation of PCBs.

Directed evolution of dienelactone hydrolase for the degradation of a polychlorinated biphenyl byproduct

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.