Degradation of organochlorine pesticides, particularly endosulfan, by Trichoderma harzianum

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Abstract
A fungus, Trichoderma harzianum, was found to degrade DDT, dieldrin, endosulfan, pentachloronitrobenzene, and pentachlorophenol but not hexachlorocyclohexane. The fungus degraded endosulfan under various nutritional conditions throughout its growth stages. Endosulfan sulfate and endosulfan diol were detected as the major fungal metabolites of endosulfan. Piperonyl butoxide, when added to the growth medium, completely inhibited the endosulfan degradation. Di‐n‐propyl malaoxon also inhibited the overall endosulfan degradation, but under such an inhibitory condition the formation of endosulfan sulfate was still observed. Using a cell‐free preparation from Trichoderma harzianum, we could demonstrate that endosulfan metabolism in vitro was stimulated by exogenously added NADPH. Together with the evidence that the initial metabolic product of endosulfan was endosulfan sulfate, we concluded that the major enzyme system responsible in Trichoderma harzianum responsible for degradation of endosulfan is an oxidative system.