Soil samples contaminated with pesticides were collected from agricultural fields in and around Pudukkottai district, TamilNadu. Samples were inoculated into mineral salts medium with Lambda cyhalothrin as the sole source of carbon and incubated for 12 days. Intermittent addition of pesticide was carried out for enrichment of cultures. Bacteria capable of degrading lambda cyhalothrin were isola...

In methanogenic environments degradation of fatty acids is a key process in the conversion of organic matter to methane and carbon dioxide. For degradation of fatty acids with three or more carbon atoms syntrophic communities are required. This chapter describes the general features of syntrophic degradation in methanogenic environments and the properties of the microorganisms involved. Syntrop...

Isolation of lignin degrading microorganisms from cow dung, soil compost, and paper pulp effluent was carried out in the present investigation. Totally 9 isolates of lignin degrading microbes were isolated using minimal salt media containing lignin (MSM-L) and lignolytic activities were preliminary screened by testing against methylene blue indicator dye containing LB medium. Eight microbes sho...

This study was conducted to investigate the occurrence of PAH degrading microorganisms in two river systems in the Western Cape, South Africa and their ability to degrade two PAH compounds: acenaphthene and fluorene. A total of 19 bacterial isolates were obtained from the Diep and Plankenburg rivers among which four were identified as acenaphthene and fluorene degrading isolates. In simulated b...

Rates of hydrocarbon biodegradation were estimated by following oxygen uptake during mineral oil oxidation or oxidation of [1-14C]hexadecane to 14CO2, when these substrates were added to natural water samples from Wisconsin lakes. A lag phase preceded hydrocarbon oxidation, the length of which depended on population density or on factors influencing growth rate and on the presence of nonhydroca...

Phenol is a man-made as well as a naturally occurring aromatic compound and an important intermediate in the biodegradation of natural and industrial aromatic compounds. Whereas many microorganisms that are capable of aerobic phenol degradation have been isolated, only a few phenol-degrading anaerobic organisms have been described to date. In this study, three novel nitrate-reducing microorgani...

The enrichment of styrene degrading microorganisms from biofilters resulted in a broad range of degrading isolates with unkown in situ relevance. For this reason an in situ labeling of styrene degrading microorganisms using deuterated styrene and phospholipid fatty acids as biomarkers prior to the isolation approach was performed. By this method the fatty acid profiles of the primary styrene de...

Lignocellulosic wastes are abundant, renewable and inexpensive sources of energy. This wastes contains large amount of residual plant biomass which is non edible material obtained from plant cell walls. Biomass could be obtained from crop, domestic liquid fuel, municipal solid waste and agricultural residuals. In nature, cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin are major component of plant biomass t...