Biodegradation of the herbicide mecoprop-p with soil depth and its relationship with class III tfdA genes
- Rodríguez-Cruz, S
- Bælum, J
- Shaw, L. J.
- Sørensen, S R
- Shi, S
- Aspray, T
- Jacobsen, C
- Bending, G D
DOIAbstract
Mecoprop-p [(R)-2-(4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy) propanoic acid) is widely used in agriculture and poses an environmental concern because of its susceptibility to leach from soil to water. We investigated the effect of soil depth on mecoprop-p biodegradation and its relationship with the number and diversity of tfdA related genes, which are the most widely known genes involved in degradation of the phenoxyalkanoic acid group of herbicides by bacteria. Mecoprop-p half-life (DT50) was approximately 12 days in soil sampled from <30 cm depth, and increased progressively with soil depth, reaching over 84 days at 70–80 cm. In sub-soil there was a lag period of between 23 and 34 days prior to a phase of rapid degradation. No lag phase occurred in top-...
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