Benzo[b]thiophene desulfurization by Gordonia rubropertinctus strain T08.

A benzothiophene-desulfurizing bacterium which has a novel desulfurization pathway was isolated and identified as Gordonia rubropertinctus strain T08. Gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy analysis of the ethyl acetate extract of the culture broth detected benzothiophene sulfoxide, benzothiophene sulfone, benzo[e][1,2]oxathiin S-oxide (BT-sultine), benzo[e][1,2]oxathiin S,S-dioxide (BT-sultone), o-hydroxystyrene, and 2-coumaranone, but not 2-(2'-hydroxyphenyl)ethan-1-al, which has been reported to be a desulfurized product of mesophilic nocardioforms.