Degradation of indole by enrichment culture and Pseudomonas aeruginosa Gs isolated from mangrove sediment

Microbial degradation of indole was investigated using enrichment culture and Pseudomonas aeruginosa Gs obtained from mangrove sediment of Hong Kong Nature Reserve as inocula. Degradation of indole using this enrichment culture and Ps. aeruginosa Gs was quantified on reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Initial concentrations of indole affected degradation and the results conformed to the zero-order kinetic model. The optimum pH and salinity were 7.0 and 5 parts per thousand, respectively, for indole degradation by Ps. aeruginosa Gs. Two major metabolites of indole degradation were detected. This study suggests that indole can be rapidly degraded by indigenous microorganisms of the mangrove environment. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.