Study on the estradiol degradation gene expression and resistance mechanism of Rhodococcus R-001 under low-temperature stress

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) 2024-06, Vol.358, p.142146-142146, Article 142146
• Main Authors: Qiu, Qing, Li, Han, Sun, Xuejian, Zhang, Lili, Tian, Kejian, Chang, Menghan, Li, Shuaiguo, Zhou, Dandan, Huo, Hongliang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: acclimation; ambient temperature; cold; cold shock response; cold stress; Degradation; DNA repair; endocrine system; endocrine-disrupting chemicals; energy metabolism; estradiol; fatty acid metabolism; Gene expression; gene expression regulation; heterologous gene expression; Low temperature; Recombinant bacteria; Rhodococcus equi; sequence analysis; transcription (genetics)
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.142146

Estradiol (E2), an endocrine disruptor, acts by mimicking or interfering with the normal physiological functions of natural hormones within organisms, leading to issues such as endocrine system disruption. Notably, seasonal fluctuations in environmental temperature may influence the degradation speed of estradiol (E2) in the natural environment, intensifying its potential health and ecological risks. Therefore, this study aims to explore how bacteria can degrade E2 under low-temperature conditions, unveiling their resistance mechanisms, with the goal of developing new strategies to mitigate the threat of E2 to health and ecological safety. In this paper, we found that Rhodococcus equi DSSKP-R-001 (R-001) can efficiently degrade E2 at 30 °C and 10 °C. Six genes in R-001 were shown to be involved in E2 degradation by heterologous expression at 30 °C. Among them, 17β-HSD, KstD2, and KstD3, were also involved in E2 degradation at 10 °C; KstD was not previously known to degrade E2. RNA-seq was used to characterize differentially expressed genes (DEGs) to explore the stress response of R-001 to low-temperature environments to elucidate the strain's adaptation mechanism. At the low temperature, R-001 cells changed from a round spherical shape to a long rod or irregular shape with elevated unsaturated fatty acids and were consistent with the corresponding genetic changes. Many differentially expressed genes linked to the cold stress response were observed. R-001 was found to upregulate genes encoding cold shock proteins, fatty acid metabolism proteins, the ABC transport system, DNA damage repair, energy metabolism and transcriptional regulators. In this study, we demonstrated six E2 degradation genes in R-001 and found for the first time that E2 degradation genes have different expression characteristics at 30 °C and 10 °C. Linking R-001 to cold acclimation provides new insights and a mechanistic basis for the simultaneous degradation of E2 under cold stress in Rhodococcus adaptation. [Display omitted] •A Rhodococcus strain was found to efficiently degrade E2 at both room and low temperatures.•The KstD genes were first proven to degrade E2 through heterologous expression, and six E2 degradation genes exhibited different expression characteristics at 30°C and 10°C.•The adaptation mechanisms of Rhodococcus strains exposed to low temperatures for decreasing E2 were analyzed for the first time.