Catabolism of pentachlorophenol by a Flavobacterium sp.

The pathway employed for pentachlorophenol (PCP) degradation by an aerobic, chlorophenol-utilizing Flavobacterium sp. was initiated by conversion of PCP to tetrachloro-p-hydroquinone (TCH). 18O labelling experiments demonstrated that the first dechlorination, where a hydroxyl replaced the chlorine at PCP ring position number 4, involved a hydrolytic reaction. Then two reductive dechlorinations of TCH followed to yield firstly trichlorohydroquinone (TrCH) and then 2,6-dichlorohydroquinone (DCH). Thus, the initial steps in catabolism of PCP by the Flavobacterium were: PCP----TCH----TrCH.