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Summary: A Gram-positive, aerobic, endospore-forming bacterium was isolated by an enrichment technique for the ability to degrade cyanide and was identified as a Bacillus pumilus strain. The bacterium rapidly degraded 100 mg I–1 of free cyanide in the absence of added inorganic and organic substances. The ability to degrade cyanide was linked to the growth phase and was not exhibited before late exponential/early stationary phase. Cyanide-degrading activity could not be induced before this time by the addition of 20 mg cyanide I–1. Production of the cyanide-degrading activity required 0·01 mg Mn2+ I–1 and did not occur at Mn2+ concentrations below 0·002 mg I–1. Cyanide-degrading activity was intracellular and cell-free extracts rapidly degraded cyanide.
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