Biodegradation of the pyridinecarboxamide insecticide flonicamid by Microvirga flocculans and characterization of two novel amidases involved

Flonicamid (N-cyanomethyl-4-trifluoromethylnicotinamide, FLO) is a new type of pyridinecarboxamide insecticide that exhibits particularly good efficacy in pest control. However, the extensive use of FLO in agricultural production poses environmental risks. Hence, its environmental behavior and degradation mechanism have received increasing attention. Microvirga flocculans CGMCC 1.16731 rapidly degrades FLO to produce the intermediate N-(4-trifluoromethylnicotinoyl) glycinamide (TFNG-AM) and the end acid metabolite 4-(trifluoromethyl) nicotinol glycine (TFNG). This bioconversion is mediated by the nitrile hydratase/amidase system; however, the amidase that is responsible for the conversion of TFNG-AM to TFNG has not yet been reported. Here, gene cloning, overexpression in Escherichia coli and characterization of pure enzymes showed that two amidases—AmiA and AmiB—hydrolyzed TFNG-AM to TFNG. AmiA and AmiB showed only 20–30% identity to experimentally characterized amidase signature family members, and represent novel amidases. Compared with AmiA, AmiB was more sensitive to silver and copper ions but more resistant to organic solvents. Both enzymes demonstrated good pH tolerance and exhibited broad amide substrate specificity. Homology modeling suggested that residues Asp191 and Ser195 may strongly affect the catalytic activity of AmiA and AmiB, respectively. The present study furthers our understanding of the enzymatic mechanisms of biodegradation of nitrile-containing insecticides and may aid in the development of a bioremediation agent for FLO.