17α-ethinylestradiol cometabolism by bacteria degrading estrone, 17β-estradiol and estriol

17 alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE2), the active compound of the contraceptive pill, is a recalcitrant estrogen, which is encountered at ng/l levels in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents and rivers and can cause feminization of aquatic organisms. The aim of this study was to isolate micro-organisms that could remove such low EE2 concentrations. In this study, six bacterial strains were isolated from compost that cometabolize EE2 when metabolizing estrone (E1), 17 beta-estradiol (E2) and estriol (E3). The strains belong to the alpha, beta and gamma-Proteobacteria. All six strains metabolize E2 over E1, at mu g/l to ng/l concentrations. In 4 days, initial concentrations of 0.5 mu g E2/l and 0.6 mu g EE2/l were degraded to 1.8 +/- 0.4 ng E2/l and 85 +/- 16 ng EE2/l, respectively. No other metabolites besides E1, E2, E3 or EE2 were detected, suggesting that total degradation and cleavage of the aromatic ring occurred. This is the first study describing that bacteria able to metabolize E2, can subsequently cometabolize EE2 at low mu g/l levels.