Naproxen as environmental pollution, its effect on bacteria metabolism and degradation mechanism in immobilized Planococcus sp. S5

Planococcus sp. S5 belongs to strains that degrade naproxen, one of the most popular non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. In the presented work, the immobilization of the S5 strain was carried out on the Loofah plant sponge, which improved the degradation efficiency, and kinetic studies indicated the abolition of the inhibition by the substrate observed in the free cell system. At the same time, after immobilization, evident changes were observed in the metabolic profile of the strain, which was related to the specific microenvironment of the carrier. The study also presents the naproxen degradation pathway in a system with the immobilized S5 strain for the first time. The analysis of intermediates formed during the decomposition of naproxen indicated that this decomposition occurs through naphthalene and salicylic acid. Furthermore, the degradation of naproxen via 3hydroxybenzoic acid to gentisic acid is also possible. The high efficiency of naproxen degradation by the immobilised S5 strain enables its use in bioremediation.