Recently, the biodegradation of volatile organic sulfur compounds (VOSCs) has become a burgeoning field, with a growing focus on the reduction of VOSCs. The reduction of VOSCs encompasses both organic emission control and odor control. Herein, Alcaligenes sp. SY1 was isolated from active sludge and found to utilize dimethyl sulfide (DMS) as a growth substrate in a mineral salt medium. Response surface methodology (RSM) analysis was applied to optimize the incubation conditions. The following conditions for optimal degradation were identified: temperature 27.03 degrees C; pH 7.80; inoculum salinity 0.84%; and initial DMS concentration 1585.39 mu M. Under these conditions, approximately 99% of the DMS was degraded within 30 h of incubation. Two metabolic compounds were detected and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS): dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) and dimethyl trisulfide (DMTS). The DMS degradation kinetics for different concentrations were evaluated using the Haldane-Andrews model and the pseudo first-order model. The maximum specific growth rate and degradation rate of Alcaligenes sp. SYI were 0.17 h(-1) and 0.63 gs gx(-1) h(-1). A possible degradation pathway is proposed, and the results suggest that Alcaligenes sp. SY1 has the potential to control odor emissions under aerobic conditions. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V.