Abstract
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are important environmental contaml- nants. They are widely distributed and have been associated with toxic effects in wildlife, such as deformities and lowered reproductive success (1), and with hepatic tumors in rats (2,3). They can enter the human food supply through fish, which bloaccumulate PCBs (4). A large fraction of the environmental PCBs are in sediments (5). It was long thought that PCBs in sediments remain unaltered, but research over the last few years has demonstrated that this is not always true. Under suitable conditions, lesser chlorinated PCBs in surficial sediments may be aerobically degraded (6,7), and PCBs deeper in sediments may be reductively dechlorinated by anaerobic bacteria (8-19).
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Gilbertson, M., Kubiak, T., Ludwig, J., and Fox, G (1991) Great Lakes embryo mortality, edema, and deformities syndrome (GLEMEDS) in colomal fish-eating birds-similarity to chxk-edema disease. J Toxicol Environ Health 33, 455–520.
Kimbrough, R. D., Squire, R A, Lmder, R E., Strandberg, J D., Montali, R. J., and Burse, V W. (1975) Inductron of liver tumors in Sherman strain female rates by polychlormated brphenyl Aroclor 1260. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 55, 1453–1459.
Norback, D H. and Weltman, R. H. (1985) Polychlorinated biphenyl induction of hepatocellular carcinoma in the Sprague-Dawley rat. Environ. Health Perspect. 60, 97–105
Schwartz, P M., Jacobson, S. W., Fem, G., Jacobson, J L., and Prtce, H. A (1983)Lake Michigan fish consumption as a source of polychlorinated biphenyls in human cord serum, maternal serum, and milk. Am. J. Public Health 73, 293–296
Tanabe, S. (1988) PCB problems in the future. foresight from current knowledge.Environ Pollut 50, 5–28
Harkness, M. R., McDermott, J B., Abramowicz, D. A., Salvo, J. J., Flanagan, W P., Stephens, M. L., Mondello, F J., May, R. J., Lobos, J. H., Carroll, K. M., Brennan, M J., Bracco, A. A, Fish, K. M., Warner, G. L., Wilson, P. R., Dietrich, D K., Lm, D. T., Morgan, C B., and Gately, W L (1993) In situ stimulation of aerobic PCB biodegradation in Hudson River sediments Science 259, 503–507.
Pardue, J. H., Delaune, R D., and Patrick, W H., Jr (1988) Effect of sediment pH and oxidation-reduction potential on PCB mineralization. Water Air Sod Pollut 37, 439–447
Alder, A C., Haggblom, M M., Oppenheimer, S R., and Young, L Y (1993)Reductive dechlormation of polychlormated biphenyls in anaerobic sediments.Environ. Sci. Technol 27, 530–538
Brown, J F., Wagner, R E., Bedard, D. L., Brennan, M J., Camahan, J C., May, R J., and Tofflemue, T J (1984) PCB transformations in upper Hudson sediments.Northeast. Environ. Sci 3, 167–179
Brown, J F., Bedard, D L., Brennan, M J., Carnahan, J C., Feng, H., and Wagner, R E (1987) Polychlorinated biphenyl dechlormation in aquatic sediments Science 236, 709–712
Brown, J. F., Wagner, R E., Feng, H., Bedard, D L., Brennan, M J., Carnahan, J. C., and May, R J. (1987) Environmental dechlorination of PCBs Environ Toxicol. Chem 6, 579–593
Fava, F., Cmti, S., and Marchetti, L. (1993) Dechlorination of Fenclor 54 and of a synthetic mixture of polychlorinated biphenyls by anaerobic microorganisms.Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 38, 808–814
Lake, J L., Pruell, R J., and Osterman, F A. (1991) Dechlorinatton of polychlorinated biphenyls in sediments of New Bedford Harbor, in Organzc Substances in Sediments and Water (Baker, R A., ed ), Lewis, Chelsea, MI, pp 173–197.
May, H D., Boyle, A W., Price, W A, and Blake, C K (1992) Subculturing of a polychlormated biphenyl-dechlorinating anaerobic enrichment on solid media Appl Environ Microbiol. 58, 4051–4054.
Nies, L. and Vogel, T M (1990) Effects of organic substrates on dechlormation of Aroclor-1242 in anaerobic sediments. Appl Environ Microbiol 56, 2612–2617
Quensen, J. F., III, Tiedje, J M., and Boyd, S A (1988) Reductive dechlorination of polychlormated biphenyls by anaerobic microorganisms from sediments Science 242, 752–754
Quensen, J. F., III, Boyd, S. A., and Tiedje, J. M. (1990) Dechlorination of four commercial polychlormated biphenyl mixtures (Aroclors) by anaerobic microorganisms from sediments. Appl. Environ. Microbiol 56, 2360–2369
Rhee, G Y., Bush, B., Bethoney, C M., Denucci, A, Oh, H M., and Sokol, R C (1993) Reductive dechlorination of Aroclor 1242 in anaerobic sediments-pattern, rate and concentration dependence. Environ Toxicol Chem. 12, 1025–1032
Van Dort, H. M and Bedard, D L (1991) Reductive ortho-dechlormation and meta-dechlorination of a polychlorinated biphenyl congener by anaerobic microorganisms Appl Environ Microbiol 57, 1576–1578
Stalling, D L (1982) Isomer Specific Composition of PCB Residues in Fish and Sedimentfrom Waukegan Harbor and Other Great Lakes Fish, Columbia National Research Laboratory, Columbia, MO
Sufltta, J M., Horowitz, A., Shelton, D R., and TiedJe, J M (1982) Dehalogenation a novel pathway for the anaerobic biodegradation of haloaromatic compounds Science 218, 1115, 1116
ATSDR (1993) Update Toxicological Profile for Selected PCBs (Aroclor 1260, 1254, 1248, 1242, 1232, 1221, and 1016), U S. Department of Human Health & Human Services, Public Health Service, Agency for TOXIC Substances and Disease Registry, TP-92/16, Atlanta, GA.
Brown, J F., Wagner, R E, Carnahan, J. C., Dorn, S B., Chalek, C L., and Lawton, R W (1988) Identification of PCB transformation processes occurring in nature, in Research and Development Program for the Destruction of PCBs: Seventh Progress Report, GE Corporate Research and Development Center, Schenectady, NY, pp 61–72
Bedard, D L and Quensen, J F., III (1995) Microbial reductrve dechlormation of polychlorinated biphenyls, in Microbial Transformation and Degradation of Toxic Organic Chemicals (Young, L. Y. and Cermglia, C E, eds), Wiley-Liss, New York, pp. 127–216.
Bedard, D L., Van Dort, H. M., Bunnell, S. C., Principe, J M., DeWeerd, K A., May, R J., and Smullen, L A (1993) Stimulation of reductive dechlormatron of Aroclor 1260 contamination in anaerobic slurries of Woods Pond sediment, in Anaerobic Dehalogenatlon and its Environmental Implecations. Abstracts of the 1992 American Society for Mlcroblology Conference, Athens, GA (Rogers, J E. and Abramowicz, D A, eds.), Office of Research and Development, U S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, pp 19–21
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1997 Humana Press Inc, Totowa, NJ
About this protocol
Cite this protocol
Quensen, J.F., Tiedje, J.M. (1997). Evaluation of PCB Dechlorination in Sediments. In: Bioremediation Protocols. Methods in Biotechnologyâ„¢, vol 2. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1385/0-89603-437-2:257
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1385/0-89603-437-2:257
Publisher Name: Humana Press
Print ISBN: 978-0-89603-437-2
Online ISBN: 978-1-59259-482-5
eBook Packages: Springer Protocols