Iso ation and Initial Charac erization ofA Pure Cultures Capable to Degradation Methyl tert- utyl Ethe (M BE)

Methyl tert-buty l ether (mtbe), a gasoline octane enhancer, was introduced a ' a substitute for lead tetraethyl over 30 yearsago. widespread use of mtbe in gasoline, has introduced mtbe into the environment compartments , mostly into theunder ground and surface water and water as a second most frequently detected contami nant. in this study, we have isolatedpure cultures from bacterial consortium capable to use mtbe as a sole carbon and energy source. mtbe biodegradationrate was measured in headspace by gas chromatography. initial liner rates of biodegradation by pinp int and white strainswere found 2.9 mg and 3 mg mtbe h- i g-i wet biomass, respecti vely. the results of 16s rdna per disclosed similaritie sin the banding patterns between the cultures, and the known degrading strain pmi. the results of this study suggestpromising perspective for engineering the in situ bioremediation of mtbe.