Microbial biodegradation

About: Microbial biodegradation is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1647 publications have been published within this topic receiving 75473 citations.

A model framework to describe growth-linked biodegradation of trace-level pollutants in the presence of coincidental carbon substrates and microbes.

Abstract: Pollutants such as pesticides and their degradation products occur ubiquitously in natural aquatic environments at trace concentrations (μg L–1 and lower). Microbial biodegradation processes have l...

Microbial Degradation of Different Hydrocarbon Fuels with Mycoremediation of Volatiles.

Abstract: Naturally occurring microorganisms in soil matrices play a significant role in overall hydrocarbon contaminant removal. Bacterial and fungal degradation processes are major contributors to aerobic remediation of surface contaminants. This study investigated degradation of conventional diesel, heating diesel fuel, synthetic diesel (Syntroleum), fish biodiesel and a 20% biodiesel/diesel blend by naturally present microbial communities in laboratory microcosms under favorable environmental conditions. Visible fungal remediation was observed with Syntroleum and fish biodiesel contaminated samples, which also showed the highest total hydrocarbon mineralization (>48%) during the first 28 days of the experiment. Heating diesel and conventional diesel fuels showed the lowest total hydrocarbon mineralization with 18-23% under favorable conditions. In concurrent experiments with growth of fungi suspended on a grid in the air space above a specific fuel with little or no soil, fungi were able to survive and grow solely on volatile hydrocarbon compounds as a carbon source. These setups involved negligible bacterial degradation for all five investigated fuel types. Fungal species able to grow on specific hydrocarbon substrates were identified as belonging to the genera of Giberella, Mortierella, Fusarium, Trichoderma, and Penicillium.

Biodegradation and Bioremediation of Organic Chemical Pollutants by Pseudomonas

Abstract: Over exploitation of natural resources and indiscriminate use of hazardous chemical substances has resulted in environmental pollution and ecological imbalance, leading to climate change and global warming. Efforts have been afoot to develop an eco-friendly, low-cost, and easy-to-use technology system to accomplish complete degradation (mineralization), partial degradation resulting in smaller molecules that are nontoxic or less toxic, or biotransformation or reduction of highly electrophilic groups to less toxic compounds. Members of the genus Pseudomonas which are endowed with a vast catabolic versatility and genetic diversity were the natural choice and have been exploited for techniques of in situ and ex situ bioremediation. Particular attention was paid to persistent organic pollutants such as polychlorinated phenols and biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, petroleum hydrocarbons, and pesticides. Plasmids encoding catabolic pathways have been used to expand the metabolic potential of Pseudomonas for use in sites contaminated with multiple pollutants. New techniques of molecular biology and genetic engineering have been used to engineer efficient and self-limiting strains. The expansion of knowledge of genomics, proteomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics and bio-information databases have proved useful to predict the metabolic potential of the organism in contaminated environments. Simultaneously, emphasis is also on improving the efficiency of natural microflora for bioremediation with minimum disturbance at the site. The technique of rhizoremediation by using root-colonizing bacteria with degradative capabilities such as Pseudomonas putida KT2440 and P. fluorescens has been found useful for degradation of pollutants in the root zone and can even travel to deeper layers of soil. The technique holds great potential for restoration of polluted sites.