Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
7.4
4.1
Journals
Microorganisms
Special Issues
The Role of Microbes in Contaminated Environments
share announcement

The Role of Microbes in Contaminated Environments

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 January 2024) | Viewed by 6686

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Min Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: bioremediation; heavy metals; phosphorus; dissimilatory metal reduction; phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms; autotrophic denitrification
Dr. Pengsong Li

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: microbiome; synthetic biology; microbial CO2 conversion; biofuel
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The presence of contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, and organic pollutants in the environment poses a severe threat to human and environmental health. Microbes have the potential to transform or degrade these harmful pollutants, causing them to be an essential tool for environmental remediation. This Special Issue of Microorganisms aims to comprehensively explore the role of microbes in contaminated environments.

The articles will cover a broad range of topics, including the characterization of microbial communities in contaminated environments, the mechanisms of pollutant degradation by microbes, and the development of novel bioremediation technologies. This Special Issue will also explore the application of microbes in the treatment of emerging contaminants, such as microplastics and pharmaceuticals. The scope is not limited to the above topics. We welcome original research articles, critical reviews, and perspectives that elucidate the role of microbes in contaminated environments.

Overall, this Special Issue aims to provide insights into the future of environmental microbiology and its role in addressing global environmental challenges. The research presented in this Issue will be of interest to environmental microbiologists, biotechnologists, ecologists, and policymakers concerned with environmental health and sustainability.

Prof. Dr. Min Li
Dr. Pengsong Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

13 pages, 2264 KiB  
Article
Isolation and Identification of Microorganisms and Antibiotic Resistance Microorganisms from Beehives Located in Palm, Corn and Longan Plantations, Thailand
by Sirikwan Dokuta, Sumed Yadoung, Peerapong Jeeno, Sayamon Hongjaisee, Phadungkiat Khamnoi, Sirinya Manochomphu, Khanchai Danmek, Jakkrawut Maitip, Bajaree Chuttong and Surat Hongsibsong
Microorganisms 2023, 11(12), 2855; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11122855 - 24 Nov 2023
Viewed by 2668
Abstract
This study aims to determine the prevalence of microorganisms and antibiotic-resistant microorganisms in beehives located on different plantations in Thailand. Seventeen swabs immersed in transport media were utilized for samples from different zones within beehives. Traditional microbial culture-based methods, biochemical tests, MALDI-TOF MS [...] Read more.
This study aims to determine the prevalence of microorganisms and antibiotic-resistant microorganisms in beehives located on different plantations in Thailand. Seventeen swabs immersed in transport media were utilized for samples from different zones within beehives. Traditional microbial culture-based methods, biochemical tests, MALDI-TOF MS (VITEK® MS, bioMerieux, Marcy-l’Étoile, France), and antibiotic drug susceptibility (disk-diffusion) tests were used to detect microorganism and antimicrobial resistance bacteria. The results from 16 beehive swabs found Gram-positive bacteria at 59.5%, Gram-negative bacteria at 35.1%, and fungi (yeast) at 5.4%. These organisms are classified as 11, 11, and 2 types of Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria, and fungi (yeast), respectively. Furthermore, no organism showed resistance to vancomycin or cefoxitin for antibiotic drug susceptibility testing. In contrast, all Acinetobacter spp. were susceptible to ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, ceftazidime, cefotaxime, imipenem, and meropenem, except for Acinetobacter schindleri, which was resistant to ceftazidime and cefotaxime. For other organisms, due to the limitations of tests to identify some environmental microbial species, the antimicrobial susceptibility test results cannot be interpreted as resistant or susceptible to the drug for these organisms. The study’s findings will support prevention, healthcare services, and public health systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Microbes in Contaminated Environments)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

12 pages, 1389 KiB  
Article
Polychlorinated Biphenyl Transformation, Peroxidase and Oxidase Activities of Fungi and Bacteria Isolated from a Historically Contaminated Site
by Flavien Maucourt, Bastien Doumèche, David Chapulliot, Laurent Vallon, Sylvie Nazaret and Laurence Fraissinet-Tachet
Microorganisms 2023, 11(8), 1887; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11081887 - 26 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1282
Abstract
Causing major health and ecological disturbances, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants still recovered all over the world. Microbial PCB biotransformation is a promising technique for depollution, but the involved molecular mechanisms remain misunderstood. Ligninolytic enzymes are suspected to be involved in [...] Read more.
Causing major health and ecological disturbances, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants still recovered all over the world. Microbial PCB biotransformation is a promising technique for depollution, but the involved molecular mechanisms remain misunderstood. Ligninolytic enzymes are suspected to be involved in many PCB transformations, but their assessments remain scarce. To further inventory the capabilities of microbes to transform PCBs through their ligninolytic enzymes, we investigated the role of oxidase and peroxidase among a set of microorganisms isolated from a historically PCB-contaminated site. Among 29 isolated fungi and 17 bacteria, this work reports for the first time the PCB-transforming capabilities from fungi affiliated to Didymella, Dothiora, Ilyonectria, Naganishia, Rhodoturula, Solicoccozyma, Thelebolus and Truncatella genera and bacteria affiliated to Peribacillus frigotolerans, Peribacillus muralis, Bacillus mycoides, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus toyonensis, Pseudarthrobacter sp., Pseudomonas chlororaphis, Erwinia aphidicola and Chryseobacterium defluvii. In the same way, this is the first report of fungal isolates affiliated to the Dothiora maculans specie and Cladosporium genus that displayed oxidase (putatively laccase) and peroxidase activity, respectively, enhanced in the presence of PCBs (more than 4-fold and 20-fold, respectively, compared to controls). Based on these results, the observed activities are suspected to be involved in PCB transformation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Microbes in Contaminated Environments)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Review

Jump to: Research

22 pages, 1816 KiB  
Review
Soil Microbes and Plant-Associated Microbes in Response to Radioactive Pollution May Indirectly Affect Plants and Insect Herbivores: Evidence for Indirect Field Effects from Chernobyl and Fukushima
by Ko Sakauchi and Joji M. Otaki
Microorganisms 2024, 12(2), 364; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12020364 - 10 Feb 2024
Viewed by 2168
Abstract
The biological impacts of the nuclear accidents in Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011) on wildlife have been studied in many organisms over decades, mainly from dosimetric perspectives based on laboratory experiments using indicator species. However, ecological perspectives are required to understand indirect field-specific [...] Read more.
The biological impacts of the nuclear accidents in Chernobyl (1986) and Fukushima (2011) on wildlife have been studied in many organisms over decades, mainly from dosimetric perspectives based on laboratory experiments using indicator species. However, ecological perspectives are required to understand indirect field-specific effects among species, which are difficult to evaluate under dosimetric laboratory conditions. From the viewpoint that microbes play a fundamental role in ecosystem function as decomposers and symbionts for plants, we reviewed studies on microbes inhabiting soil and plants in Chernobyl and Fukushima in an attempt to find supporting evidence for indirect field-specific effects on plants and insect herbivores. Compositional changes in soil microbes associated with decreases in abundance and species diversity were reported, especially in heavily contaminated areas of both Chernobyl and Fukushima, which may accompany explosions of radioresistant species. In Chernobyl, the population size of soil microbes remained low for at least 20 years after the accident, and the abundance of plant-associated microbes, which are related to the growth and defense systems of plants, possibly decreased. These reported changes in microbes likely affect soil conditions and alter plant physiology. These microbe-mediated effects may then indirectly affect insect herbivores through food-mass-mediated, pollen-mediated, and metabolite-mediated interactions. Metabolite-mediated interactions may be a major pathway for ecological impacts at low pollution levels and could explain the decreases in insect herbivores in Fukushima. The present review highlights the importance of the indirect field effects of long-term low-dose radiation exposure under complex field circumstances. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Microbes in Contaminated Environments)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop