Biodegradation of indole by a newly isolated Cupriavidus sp. SHE

Indole, a typical nitrogen heterocyclic aromatic pollutant, is extensively spread in industrial wastewater. Microbial degradation has been proven to be a feasible approach to remove indole, whereas the microbial resources are fairly limited. A bacterial strain designated as SHE was isolated and found to be an efficient indole degrader. It was identified as Cupriavidus sp. according to 16S rRNA gene analysis. Strain SHE could utilize indole as the sole carbon source and almost completely degrade 100 mg/L of indole within 24 hr. It still harbored relatively high indole degradation capacity within pH 4–9 and temperature 25°C–35°C. Experiments also showed that some heavy metals such as Mn^2 +, Pb^2 + and Co^2 + did not pose severe inhibition on indole degradation. Based on high performance liquid chromatography–mass spectrum analysis, isatin was identified as a minor intermediate during the process of indole biodegradation. A major yellow product with m/z 265.0605 (C₁₅H₈N₂O₃) was generated and accumulated, suggesting a novel indole conversion pathway existed. Genome analysis of strain SHE indicated that there existed a rich set of oxidoreductases, which might be the key reason for the efficient degradation of indole. The robust degradation ability of strain SHE makes it a promising candidate for the treatment of indole containing wastewater.     

Performance evaluation of isoproturon-degrading indigenous bacterial isolates in soil microcosm

Isoproturon (IPU)-degrading soil bacteria were isolated from herbicide-applied wheat fields. These isolates were identified using cultural, morphological, biochemical and 16S rRNA sequencing methods. 16S rRNA sequences of both the bacterial isolates were compared with NCBI GenBank data base and identified as Bacillus pumilus and Pseudoxanthomonas sp. A soil microcosm study was carried out for 40 days in six different treatments. Experimental results revealed maximum 95.98% IPU degradation in treatment 6 where bacterial consortia were augmented in natural soil, followed by 91.53% in treatment 5 enriched with organic manure as an additional carbon source. However, only 14.03% IPU was degraded in treatment 1 (control) after 40 days. In treatments (2–4), 75.59%, 70.92% and 77.32% IPU degradation was recorded, respectively. IPU degradation in all the treatments varied significantly over the control. 4-Isopropylaniline was detected as IPU degradation by-product in the medium. The study confirmed that B. pumilus and Pseudoxanthomonas sp. performed effectively in soil microcosms and could be employed profitably for field-scale bioremediation experiments.     

Biological degradation of triclocarban and triclosan in a soil under aerobic and anaerobic conditions and comparison with environmental fate modelling

Triclocarban and triclosan are two antimicrobial agents widely used in many personal care products. Their biodegradation behaviour in soil was investigated by laboratory degradation experiments and environmental fate modelling. Quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) analyses showed that triclocarban and triclosan had a tendency to partition into soil or sediment in the environment. Fate modelling suggests that either triclocarban or triclosan "does not degrade fast" with its primary biodegradation half-life of "weeks" and ultimate biodegradation half-life of "months". Laboratory experiments showed that triclocarban and triclosan were degraded in the aerobic soil with half-life of 108 days and 18 days, respectively. No negative effect of these two antimicrobial agents on soil microbial activity was observed in the aerobic soil samples during the experiments. But these two compounds persisted in the anaerobic soil within 70 days of the experimental period.     

Effect of water-table fluctuation on dissolution and biodegradation of a multi-component, light nonaqueous-phase liquid

Light nonaqueous-phase liquids (LNAPLs) such as gasoline and diesel fuel are among the most common causes of soil and groundwater contamination. Dissolution and subsequent advective transport of LNAPL components can negatively impact water supplies, while biodegradation is thought to be an important sink for this class of contaminants. We present a laboratory investigation of the effect of a water-table fluctuation on dissolution and biodegradation of a multi-component LNAPL (85% hexadecane, 5% toluene, 5% ethylbenzene, and 5% 2-methylnapthalene on a molar basis) in a pair of similar model aquifers (80 cm x 50 cm x 3 cm), one of which was subjected to a water-table fluctuation. Water-table fluctuation resulted in LNAPL and air entrapment below the water table, an increase in the vertical extent of the LNAPL source zone (by factor 6.7), and an increase in the volume of water passing through the source zone (by factor ~18). Effluent concentrations of dissolved LNAPL components were substantially higher and those of dissolved nitrate lower in the model aquifer where a fluctuation had been induced. Thus, water-table fluctuation led to enhanced biodegradation activity (28.3 mmol of nitrate consumed compared to 16.3 mmol in the model without fluctuation) as well as enhanced dissolution of LNAPL components. Despite the increased biodegradation, fluctuation led to increased elution of dissolved LNAPL components from the system (by factors 10-20). Hence, water-table fluctuations in LNAPL-contaminated aquifers might be expected to result in increased exposure of downgradient receptors to LNAPL components. Accordingly, water-table fluctuations in contaminated aquifers are probably undesirable unless the LNAPL is of minimal solubility or the dissolved-phase plume is not expected to reach a receptor due to distance or the presence of some form of containment.     

Effect of photo-biodegradation and biodegradation on the biogeochemical cycling of dissolved organic matter across diverse surface water bodies

The objective of this research was to quantify the temporal variation of dissolved organic matter(DOM) in five distinct waterbodies in watersheds with diverse types of land use and land cover in the presence and absence of sunlight. The water bodies were an agricultural pond, a lake in a forested watershed, a man-made reservoir, an estuary, and a bay. Two sets of samples were prepared by dispensing unfiltered samples into filtered samples in 1:10 ratio(V/V). The first set was exposed to sunlight(10 hr per day for 30 days) for examining the combined effect of photo-biodegradation, while the second set was stored in dark for examining biodegradation alone. Spectroscopic measurements in tandem with multivariate statistics were used to interpret DOM lability and composition. The results suggest that the agricultural pond behaved differently compared to other study locations during degradation experiments due to the presence of higher amount of microbial humic-like and protein-like components derived from microbial/anthropogenic sources. For all samples, a larger decrease in dissolved organic carbon(DOC) concentration(10.12% ±9.81% for photo-biodegradation and 6.65% ± 2.83% for biodegradation) and rapid transformation of DOM components(i.e., terrestrial humic-like components into microbial humic and protein-like components) were observed during photo-biodegradation experiments.Results suggest that sunlight facilitated DOM biodegradation, resulting in simpler recalcitrant molecules regardless of original composition. Overall, it was found that combined effects of light and bacteria are more efficient than bacterial effects alone in remineralizing and altering DOM, which highlights the crucial importance of sunlight in transforming aquatic DOM.     

LAS、AE降解菌的筛选及降解效率的研究

以某合成洗涤剂厂曝气池活性污泥为菌种来源，表面活性剂直链烷基苯磺酸钠（LAS）及脂肪醇聚氧乙烯醚（AE）为唯一碳源进行选择培养，从中分离出5株降解LAS、AE能力强的菌株。根据各菌株菌体形态、染色反应和生理生化反应，分别对5菌株进行了菌种鉴定，并在不同的温度、pH值和供氧的情况下对5株菌株进行培养，研究菌株生长所适宜的环境条件。同时根据LAS、AE对水绵伤害实验，以生物监测的方法对菌株降解LAS、AE的效率进行了研究。     

污泥上清液的有机物浓度及其生物降解性

在进行城市生活污水的生物处理过程中，会产生一定量的生化污泥。在浓缩和处理剩余污泥时，所产生的含高浓度有机物的污泥上清液被回流到污水处理系统，不适当的回流会增加水处理系统的负荷并严重影响，出水的水质。实验证明，在污泥浓缩中，污泥上清液中有机物含有与浓缩温度成ｅ指数关系，与浓缩时间成小于１的指数关系。     

Bio-remediation of acephate–Pb(II) compound contaminants by Bacillus subtilis FZUL-33

Removal of Pb~(2+)and biodegradation of organophosphorus have been both widely investigated respectively. However, bio-remediation of both Pb~(2+)and organophosphorus still remains largely unexplored. Bacillus subtilis FZUL-33, which was isolated from the sediment of a lake, possesses the capability for both biomineralization of Pb~(2+)and biodegradation of acephate. In the present study, both Pb~(2+)and acephate were simultaneously removed via biodegradation and biomineralization in aqueous solutions.Batch experiments were conducted to study the influence of p H, interaction time and Pb~(2+)concentration on the process of removal of Pb2+. At the temperature of 25°C, the maximum removal of Pb~(2+)by B. subtilis FZUL-33 was 381.31 ± 11.46 mg/g under the conditions of p H 5.5, initial Pb~(2+)concentration of 1300 mg/L, and contact time of 10 min. Batch experiments were conducted to study the influence of acephate on removal of Pb~(2+)and the influence of Pb2+on biodegradation of acephate by B. subtilis FZUL-33. In the mixed system of acephate–Pb2+, the results show that biodegradation of acephate by B. subtilis FZUL-33 released PO43+, which promotes mineralization of Pb2+. The process of biodegradation of acephate was affected slightly when the concentration of Pb2+was below 100 mg/L. Based on the results, it can be inferred that the B. subtilis FZUL-33 plays a significant role in bio-remediation of organophosphorus-heavy metal compound contamination.     

硝基苯废水治理的最新研究进展

硝基苯类化合物的高毒性、难降解性及其在环境中的积累性,使得硝基苯污染治理越来越受到科研工作者的关注.近几年国内外硝基苯废水治理的研究主要包括物化法、生物法两大类.深入探讨每种技术的基本原理和存在的问题,对硝基苯类废水的处理难点和关键技术以及今后的研究方向进行了分析探讨,发现目前尚未出现具有显著经济和环境优势的技术,同时还指出硝基苯废水处理技术近期的进展可能取决于将现有处理技术综合应用.     

Application of a luminescence-based biosensor for assessing naphthalene biodegradation in soils from a manufactured gas plant

Despite numerous reviews suggesting that microbial biosensors could be used in many environmental applications, in reality they have failed to be used for which they were designed. In part this is because most of these sensors perform in an aqueous phase and a buffered medium, which is in contrast to the nature of genuine environmental systems. In this study, a range of non-exhaustive extraction techniques (NEETs) were assessed for (i) compatibility with a naphthalene responsive biosensor and (ii) correlation with naphthalene biodegradation. The NEETs removed a portion of the total soil naphthalene in the order of methanol > HPCD > βCD > water. To place the biosensor performance to NEETs in context, a biodegradation experiment was carried out using historically contaminated soils. By coupling the HPCD extraction with the biosensor, it was possible to assess the fraction of the naphthalene capable of undergoing microbial degradation in soil.