Emerging chemicals and the evolution of biodegradation capacities and pathways in bacteria

- Bacteria exploit a variety of mechanisms to access new chemical substrates.
- Gene duplication can lead to rapid evolution of new or more efficient functions.
- Mobile elements from the metagenome enable assembly of novel pathways.
- Physicochemical and evolutionary prerequisites limit the potential to adapt.
- Trace contaminants will remain a major concern due to Ks/concentration relationships.