To obtain more details regarding the bacteria associated
with anaerobic degradation of PBDEs in different settings
(presence and absence of zero-valent iron for BDE-28 and
BDE-209), we examined the distribution of bacterial genera
with sequence frequency negatively correlated with PBDE
remaining percentage (increased with PBDE degradation).
Four bacterial classes (Bacilli, Clostridia, Alphaproteobacteria,
and Gammaproteobacteria) were common in four
experimental settings (Fig. 7A). The class Betaproteobacteria
was identified in three experimental settings except in
anaerobic degradation of BDE-209 without zero-valent iron.