A bacterial strain designated in this study as POXN01 was found to be capable of degrading the synthetic organophosphorus pesticides paraoxon and methyl parathion. The strain was initially isolated through enrichment technique from rice field soil near Harlingen, Texas. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA, gyrB and rpoD gene alignments identified the POXN01 isolate as a new strain of Pseudomonas putida, which is closely related to the recently discovered nicotine-degrading strain Pseudomonas putida S16. While being unable to metabolize nicotine, the POXN01 isolate was observed to actively proliferate using monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, in particular toluene, as nutrients. Search for the genetic determinants of paraoxon catabolism revealed the presence of organophosphorus-degrading gene, opd, identical to the one from Sphingobium fuliginis (former Flavobacterium sp. ATCC 27551). Assimilation of aromatic compounds likely relies on phc ARKLMNOPQ gene cluster for phenol, benzene and toluene catabolism, and on benRABCDKGEF cluster for benzoate catabolism. The observed versatility of POXN01 strain in degradation of xenobiotics makes it useful for the multi-purpose bioremediation of contaminated sites in both agricultural and industrial environmental settings.