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Article: Bacteria goes after PCBs: RPI researcher helps identify microbe that attacks toxic chemical.
- Article from:
- Times Union (Albany, NY)
- Article date:
- March 9, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Times Union. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Dan Higgins
Mar. 9--TROY -- PCBs, the toxic pollutants fouling the Hudson and other rivers for decades, are notoriously difficult to clean up. Researchers have long known about an interesting possible solution to the problem: Bacteria in river water naturally break down PCBs. But the process is very slow, and, for years, no one knew exactly which microbes were doing the job. What Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Donna Bedard and her colleagues discovered was the long-sought identity of a specific microbe. Dehalococcoides, or DHC, is the bacteria responsible for breaking down the chlorine in some PCBs. Once the chlorine is removed, the PCBs are much ...