Wang_2017_Food.Control_77_57

Zearalenone (ZEN), mainly produced by Fusarium species, is an estrogenic mycotoxin which causes reproductive disorders in livestock. In this study, we described a simple and rapid method for screening of ZEN-degrading bacteria by esterase activity assay. Soil bacteria strains were first tested for their esterase activities, then active strains were further evaluated for their ZEN-degrading potentials. A bacterial strain named Bacillus pumilus ES-21 was detected to be able to eliminate ZEN in the culture medium. ZEN degradation conditions were optimized through response surface methodology and the result showed that the degradation rate of ZEN by Bacillus pumilus ES-21 was up to 95.7% at the ZEN concentration of 17.9 mug/ml within 24 h. One of the degradation product was proposed to be 1-(3,5-dihydroxyphenyl)-6'-hydroxy-l'-undecen-l0'-one according to LC-TOF-MS/MS analysis. This study provided a strategy for the isolation of ZEN degrading microbes and a promising degrading strain.