Specific character of bacterial biodegradation of polyhydroxyalkanoates with different chemical structure in soil

Abstract

The study addresses the influence of the physicochemical properties of the reserve cellular macromolecules (polyhydroxyalkanoates, PHA) with different chemical composition on their biodegradation in the agro-transformed field soil of the Siberian region (Krasnoyarsk Territory, Russia). It was shown that the degradation of the PHA samples depends on the degree of polymer crystallinity (C_x). For the first time, it was shown that the range of PHA-degrading microorganisms differs for each of PHA types. The study defines the primary degraders specific to each PHA type and common to all types of examined polymers.