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Power of Microbes in Pollutant Degradation

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Bioorganic Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 8303

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Prof. Dr. Fahrul Huyop

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Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Science, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310, Malaysia
Interests: dehalogenase; biochemistry and molecular biology of pollutant degradation; prokaryotic biochemistry; haloalkanoic acid; microbial dehalogenases; aliphatic acid degradation; metagenomics
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Dear Colleagues,

The natural system is the preferred method, and the most cost-saving option for the treatment of polluted environments. However, the presence of new kinds of chemicals represents a great challenge for microbes in performing their essential role in bioremediation.

The traditional method used in pollutant degradation studies involves the isolation of one or more organisms capable of degrading target pollutants in the environment. These toxic materials are utilized by these microbes as their sole source of carbon and energy.

This Special Issue, “Power of Microbes in Pollutant Degradation”, aims to cover every aspect of biodegradation potential, development and solutions regarding the microbes associated with pollutants. In addition, approaches using metagenomic and bioinformatics, together with emerging high-throughput sequencing technologies (genomic/proteomic), have provided insight into the complex interactions between different microbial communities and their metabolic potentials. This could be exploited further for bioremediation strategies in the removal of pollutants from the environment.

This Special Issue provides an opportunity for researchers to present their latest work addressing the fundamental aspects and applied research within this field.

Full articles, short communications, and review articles are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Fahrul Huyop
Guest Editor

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Keywords

in silico bioremediation
environmental pollutants
bacterial enzymes
engineered bacteria for bioremediation
microbial bioremediation
recalcitrant
chlorinated organic pollutants
degradation
wastewater treatment
pollutant degradation
pollutants
bioremediation
biodegradation
microplastics

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 11246 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Oil-Contaminated Soil Remediation with Biodegradation by Autochthonous Microorganisms and Phytoremediation by Maize (Zea mays)

by Katarzyna Wojtowicz, Teresa Steliga, Piotr Kapusta and Joanna Brzeszcz

Molecules 2023, 28(16), 6104; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28166104 - 17 Aug 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1588

Abstract

Biological methods are currently the most commonly used methods for removing hazardous substances from land. This research work focuses on the remediation of oil-contaminated land. The biodegradation of aliphatic hydrocarbons and PAHs as a result of inoculation with biopreparations B1 and B2 was investigated. Biopreparation B1 was developed on the basis of autochthonous bacteria, consisting of strains Dietzia sp. IN118, Gordonia sp. IN101, Mycolicibacterium frederiksbergense IN53, Rhodococcus erythropolis IN119, Rhodococcus globerulus IN113 and Raoultella sp. IN109, whereas biopreparation B2 was enriched with fungi, such as Aspergillus sydowii, Aspergillus versicolor, Candida sp., Cladosporium halotolerans, Penicillium chrysogenum. As a result of biodegradation tests conducted under ex situ conditions for soil inoculated with biopreparation B1, the concentrations of TPH and PAH were reduced by 31.85% and 27.41%, respectively. Soil inoculation with biopreparation B2 turned out to be more effective, as a result of which the concentration of TPH was reduced by 41.67% and PAH by 34.73%. Another issue was the phytoremediation of the pre-treated G6-3B2 soil with the use of Zea mays. The tests were carried out in three systems (system 1—soil G6-3B2 + Zea mays; system 2—soil G6-3B2 + biopreparation B2 + Zea mays; system 3—soil G6-3B2 + biopreparation B2 with γ-PGA + Zea mays) for 6 months. The highest degree of TPH and PAH reduction was obtained in system 3, amounting to 65.35% and 60.80%, respectively. The lowest phytoremediation efficiency was recorded in the non-inoculated system 1, where the concentration of TPH was reduced by 22.80% and PAH by 18.48%. Toxicological tests carried out using Phytotoxkit^TM, Ostracodtoxkit^TM and Microtox^® Solid Phase tests confirmed the effectiveness of remediation procedures and showed a correlation between the concentration of petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil and its toxicity. The results obtained during the research indicate the great potential of bioremediation practices with the use of microbial biopreparations and Zea mays in the treatment of soils contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power of Microbes in Pollutant Degradation)

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19 pages, 4663 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Characterization and Biodegradation of Phenol by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella variicola Strains Isolated from Sewage Sludge and Their Effect on Soybean Seeds Germination

by Samir A. Mahgoub, Shaza Y. A. Qattan, Salma S. Salem, Howaida M. Abdelbasit, Mohamed Raafat, Mada F. Ashkan, Diana A. Al-Quwaie, Ebtihal Abdullah Motwali, Fatimah S. Alqahtani and Hassan I. Abd El-Fattah

Molecules 2023, 28(3), 1203; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28031203 - 26 Jan 2023

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3328

Abstract

Phenols are very soluble in water; as a result, they can pollute a massive volume of fresh water, wastewater, groundwater, oceans, and soil, negatively affecting plant germination and animal and human health. For the detoxification and bioremediation of phenol in wastewater, phenol biodegradation using novel bacteria isolated from sewage sludge was investigated. Twenty samples from sewage sludge (SS) were collected, and bacteria in SS contents were cultured in the mineral salt agar (MSA) containing phenol (500 mg/L). Twenty colonies (S1 up to S20) were recovered from all the tested SS samples. The characteristics of three bacterial properties, 16S rDNA sequencing, similarities, GenBank accession number, and phylogenetic analysis showed that strains S3, S10, and S18 were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Klebsiella variicola, respectively. P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, and K. variicola were able to degrade 1000 mg/L phenol in the mineral salt medium. The bacterial strains from sewage sludge were efficient in removing 71.70 and 74.67% of phenol at 1000 mg/L within three days and could tolerate high phenol concentrations (2000 mg/L). The findings showed that P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, and K. variicola could potentially treat phenolic water. All soybean and faba bean seeds were germinated after being treated with 250, 500, 750, and 1000 mg/L phenol in a mineral salt medium inoculated with these strains. The highest maximum phenol removal and detoxification rates were P. aeruginosa and K. variicola. These strains may help decompose and detoxify phenol from industrial wastewater with high phenol levels and bioremediating phenol-contaminated soils. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power of Microbes in Pollutant Degradation)

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23 pages, 5825 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Microbial Degradation, Spectral analysis and Toxicological Assessment of Malachite Green Dye by Streptomyces exfoliatus

by Samah H. Abu-Hussien, Bahaa A. Hemdan, Othman M. Alzahrani, Amal S. Alswat, Fuad A. Alatawi, Muneefah Abdullah Alenezi, Doaa Bahaa Eldin Darwish, Hanouf S. Bafhaid, Samy F. Mahmoud, Mohamed F. M. Ibrahim and Salwa M. El-Sayed

Molecules 2022, 27(19), 6456; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27196456 - 30 Sep 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2885

Abstract

Malachite green (MG) dye is a common environmental pollutant that threatens human health and the integrity of the Earth’s ecosystem. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential biodegradation of MG dye by actinomycetes species isolated from planted soil near an industrial water effluent in Cairo, Egypt. The Streptomyces isolate St 45 was selected according to its high efficiency for laccase production. It was identified as S. exfoliatus based on phenotype and 16S rRNA molecular analysis and was deposited in the NCBI GenBank with the gene accession number OL720220. Its growth kinetics were studied during an incubation time of 144 h, during which the growth rate was 0.4232 (µ/h), the duplication time (td) was 1.64 d, and multiplication rate (MR) was 0.61 h, with an MG decolorization value of 96% after 120 h of incubation at 25 °C. Eleven physical and nutritional factors (mannitol, frying oil waste, MgSO₄, NH₄NO₃, NH₄Cl, dye concentration, pH, agitation, temperature, inoculum size, and incubation time) were screened for significance in the biodegradation of MG by S. exfoliatus using PBD. Out of the eleven factors screened in PBD, five (dye concentration, frying oil waste, MgSO₄, inoculum size, and pH) were shown to be significant in the decolorization process. Central composite design (CCD) was applied to optimize the biodegradation of MG. Maximum decolorization was attained using the following optimal conditions: food oil waste, 7.5 mL/L; MgSO₄, 0.35 g/L; dye concentration, 0.04 g/L; pH, 4.0; and inoculum size, 12.5%. The products from the degradation of MG by S. exfoliatus were characterized using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results revealed the presence of several compounds, including leuco-malachite green, di(tert-butyl)(2-phenylethoxy) silane, 1,3-benzenedicarboxylic acid, bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester, 1,4-benzenedicarboxylic acid, bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester, 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid, di-n-octyl phthalate, and 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid, dioctyl ester. Moreover, the phytotoxicity, microbial toxicity, and cytotoxicity tests confirmed that the byproducts of MG degradation were not toxic to plants, microbes, or human cells. The results of this work implicate S. exfoliatus as a novel strain for MG biodegradation in different environments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Power of Microbes in Pollutant Degradation)

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