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Genomic analysis and biodesulfurization potential of a new carbon–sulfur bond cleaving Tsukamurella sp. 3OW

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Abstract

Direct combustion of sulfur-enriched liquid fuel oil causes sulfur oxide emission, which is one of the main contributors to air pollution. Biodesulfurization is a promising and eco-friendly method to desulfurize a wide range of thiophenic compounds present in fuel oil. Previously, numerous bacterial strains from genera such as Rhodococcus, Corynebacterium, Gordonia, Nocardia, Mycobacterium, Mycolicibacterium, Paenibacillus, Shewanella, Sphingomonas, Halothiobacillus, and Bacillus have been reported to be capable of desulfurizing model thiophenic compounds or fossil fuels. In the present study, we report a new desulfurizing bacterium, Tsukamurella sp. 3OW, capable of desulfurization of dibenzothiophene through the carbon–sulfur bond cleavage 4S pathway. The bacterium showed a high affinity for the hydrocarbon phase and broad substrate specificity towards various thiophenic compounds. The overall genome-related index analysis revealed that the bacterium is closely related to Tsukamurella paurometabola species. The genomic pool of strain 3OW contains 57 genes related to sulfur metabolism, including the key dszABC genes responsible for dibenzothiophene desulfurization. The DBT-adapted cells of the strain 3OW displayed significant resilience and viability in elevated concentrations of crude oil. The bacterium showed a 19 and 37% reduction in the total sulfur present in crude and diesel oil, respectively. Furthermore, FTIR analysis indicates that the oil's overall chemistry remained unaltered following biodesulfurization. This study implies that Tsukamurella paurometabola species, previously undocumented in the context of biodesulfurization, has good potential for application in the biodesulfurization of petroleum oils.

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Data availability

The data presented in the study are deposited in the NCBI SRA repository (BioProject number PRJNA726364) and GenBank/ENA/DDBJ genetic sequence database (WGS accession JAGXOE000000000).

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Dr. Muhammad Farooq (Principal Scientist, NIBGE) for his assistance in assembling the bacterial genome sequence.

Funding

This research work was supported by the International Foundation for Science (IFS), Stockholm, Sweden (agreement no. F-5379-2) and the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan (research project no. NRPU-11570).

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Author notes

  1. Javeria Akram and Muhammad Umar Hussain have equally contributed in this manuscript

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Industrial Biotechnology Division, National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering College, Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (NIBGE-C, PIEAS), P. O. Box 577, Jhang Road, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    Javeria Akram, Muhammad Umar Hussain, Asma Aslam, Kalsoom Akhtar, Munir Ahmad Anwar & Nasrin Akhtar

  2. Health Biotechnology Division, National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, P. O. Box 577, Jhang Road, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    Mazhar Iqbal

  3. Attock Refinery Limited (ARL), Refinery P. O. Morgah, Rawalpindi, Pakistan

    Muhammad Tahir Hussain

Authors
  1. Javeria Akram
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  2. Muhammad Umar Hussain
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Contributions

Javeria Akram: Experimentation, Formal analysis, Visualization, Writing. Muhammad Umar Hussain: Experimentation, Visualization, Metabolite extraction, HPLC/MS analysis, Writing. Asma Aslam: Experimentation, Formal analysis, Data interpretation, Writing-basic draft. Kalsoom Akhtar: Visualization, Review &; Editing. Munir Ahmad Anwar: Proof reading- Review &; Editing. Mazhar Iqbal: LC/MS analysis &; data interpretation. Muhammad Tahir Hussain: Sampling, Investigation, Crude and diesel oil analysis, Nasrin Akhtar: Conceptualization, Supervision, Project administration, Funding acquisition, Resources, Writing-original draft, Writing-review &; editing.

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Correspondence to Nasrin Akhtar.

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Akram, J., Hussain, M.U., Aslam, A. et al. Genomic analysis and biodesulfurization potential of a new carbon–sulfur bond cleaving Tsukamurella sp. 3OW. Int Microbiol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-024-00484-z

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