Evaluating the simulated toxicities of metal mixtures and hydrocarbons using the alkane degrading bioreporter Acinetobacter baylyi ADPWH_recA

Effects of heavy metals and metalloids on the biodegradation of organic contaminants

Heavy metals and metalloids (HMMs) inhibit the biodegradation of organic pollutants. The degree of inhibition depends not only on the concentration and bioavailability of HMMs but also on additional factors, such as environmental variables (e.g., inorganic components, organic matter, pH, and redox potential), the nature of the metals, and microbial species. Based on the degradation pattern and metal concentrations causing half biodegradation rate reductions (RC50s), the inhibition of biodegradation was: Hg2+, As2O3 > Cu2+, Cd2+, Pb2+, Cr3+ > Ni2+, Co2+ > Mn2+, Zn2+ > Fe3+. Four patterns were observed: inhibition increases with increasing metal concentration; low concentrations stimulate, while high concentrations inhibit; high concentrations inhibit less; and mild inhibition remains constant. In addition, metal ion mixtures have more complex inhibitory effects on the degradation of organic pollutants, which may be greater than, similar to, or less than that of individual HMMs. Finally, the inhibitory mechanism of HMMs on biodegradation is reviewed. HMMs generally have little impact on the biodegradation pathway of organic pollutants for bacterial strains. However, when pollutants are biodegraded by the community, HMMs may activate microbial populations harbouring different transformation pathways. HMMs can affect the biodegradation efficiency of organic pollutants by changing the surface properties of microbes, interfering with degradative enzymes, and interacting with general metabolism.

Urea addition as an enhanced strategy for degradation of petroleum contaminants during co-composting of straw and pig manure: Evidences from microbial community and enzyme activity evaluation

Alterations in microbial community succession patterns and enzyme activities by petroleum pollutants during co-composting of straw and swine manure with the supplementary nitrogen source are unclear. In this study, urea was added into co-composting systems, and the removal performance of petroleum, microbial enzyme activity and community changes were investigated. Results showed that the polyphenol oxidase and catalase activities which were both related to the degradation of petroleum contaminants were accordingly increased from 20.65 to 30.31 U/g and from 171.87 to 231.86 U/g due to urea addition. The removal efficiency of petroleum contaminants in composting with urea increased from 45.06% to 82.29%. The addition of urea increased the diversity and abundance of petroleum-degrading microorganisms, and enhanced microbial linkages. This study provides a novel strategy for the degradation of petroleum hydrocarbon as well as a new insight into the effect of urea on both microbial processes and composting phases.

Application of magnetic-nanoparticle functionalized whole-cell biosensor array for bioavailability and ecotoxicity estimation at urban contaminated sites

The bioavailability and ecotoxicity of pollutants are important for urban ecological systems and human health, particularly at contaminated urban sites. Therefore, whole-cell bioreporters are used in many studies to assess the risks of priority chemicals; however, their application is restricted by low throughput for specific compounds and complicated operations for field tests. In this study, an assembly technology for manufacturing Acinetobacter-based biosensor arrays using magnetic nanoparticle functionalization was developed to solve this problem. The bioreporter cells maintained high viability, sensitivity, and specificity in sensing 28 priority chemicals, seven heavy metals, and seven inorganic compounds in a high-throughput manner, and their performance remained acceptable for at least 20 d. We also tested the performance by assessing 22 real environmental soil samples from urban areas in China, and our results showed positive correlations between the biosensor estimation and chemical analysis. Our findings prove the feasibility of the magnetic nanoparticle-functionalized biosensor array to recognize the types and toxicities of multiple contaminants for online environmental monitoring at contaminated sites.

Online detection of alkanes by a biological-phase microextraction and biosensing (BPME-BS) device

Oil spill incidents occur frequently and threaten ecosystems and human health. Solid-phase microextraction allows direct alkane extraction from environmental matrices to improve the limit of detection but is unable to measure alkanes on site. A biological-phase microextraction and biosensing (BPME-BS) device was developed by immobilising an alkane chemotactic Acinetobacter bioreporter ADPWH_alk in agarose gel to achieve online alkane quantification with the aid of a photomultiplier. The BPME-BS device had a high enrichment factor (average 7.07) and a satisfactory limit of detection (0.075 mg/L) for alkanes. The quantification range was 0.1-100 mg/L, comparable to a gas chromatography flame ionisation detector and better than a bioreporter without immobilisation. ADPWH_alk cells in the BPME-BS device maintained good sensitivity under a wide range of environmental conditions, including pH (4.0-9.0), temperature (20-40 °C), and salinity (0.0-3.0%), and its response remained stable within 30 days at 4 °C. In a 7-day continual measurement, the BPME-BS device successfully visualised the dynamic concentration of alkanes, and a 7-day field test successfully captured an oil spill event, helping in source apportionment and on-scene law enforcement. Our work proved that the BPME-BS device is a powerful tool for online alkane measurement, showing substantial potential for fast detection and rapid response to oil spills on site and in situ.

Mixed heavy metal stress induces global iron starvation response

Multiple heavy metal contamination is an increasingly common global problem. Heavy metals have the potential to disrupt microbially mediated biogeochemical cycling. However, systems-level studies on the effects of combinations of heavy metals on bacteria are lacking. For this study, we focused on the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR; Oak Ridge, TN, USA) subsurface which is contaminated with several heavy metals and high concentrations of nitrate. Using a native Bacillus cereus isolate that represents a dominant species at this site, we assessed the combined impact of eight metal contaminants, all at site-relevant concentrations, on cell processes through an integrated multi-omics approach that included discovery proteomics, targeted metabolomics, and targeted gene-expression profiling. The combination of eight metals impacted cell physiology in a manner that could not have been predicted from summing phenotypic responses to the individual metals. Exposure to the metal mixture elicited a global iron starvation response not observed during individual metal exposures. This disruption of iron homeostasis resulted in decreased activity of the iron-cofactor-containing nitrate and nitrite reductases, both of which are important in biological nitrate removal at the site. We propose that the combinatorial effects of simultaneous exposure to multiple heavy metals is an underappreciated yet significant form of cell stress in the environment with the potential to disrupt global nutrient cycles and to impede bioremediation efforts at mixed waste sites. Our work underscores the need to shift from single- to multi-metal studies for assessing and predicting the impacts of complex contaminants on microbial systems.

Simultaneous determination of heavy metal concentrations and toxicities by diffusive gradient in thin films containing Acinetobacter whole-cell bioreporters (Bio-DGT)

Heavy metal contaminations may cause severe toxic impacts to ecological systems and human health. Measurements of metals' bioavailable concentrations and toxicities simultaneously and in-situ in environments can advance the understanding of their hazardous effects. The diffusive gradients in thin-films (DGT) is an in-situ technique can measure metal speciation and labile concentrations, but cannot yet provide the direct toxicity information. The whole-cell bioreporter Acinetobacter baylyi ADPWH_recA was successfully incorporated into the DGT device to develop a novel technique, Bio-DGT, for assessing the toxicity of metals at the same time of measuring their labile concentrations. The bioassay used in Bio-DGT can sense the mixture toxicity from multiple contaminants and the DGT can assist in identifying which toxicants may be causing the toxicity. Cadmium was used as the model metal to test the performance of Bio-DGT in waters and soils. The masses of Cd accumulated in Bio-DGT increased linearly and theoretically with time for 7 days deployment, indicating little influences from bioreporter cells on DGT performance. A positive relationship between bioluminescent signals towards Cd demonstrated the sensitive and active bioreporters' response. The sensitive of Bio-DGT, indicated by Cd concentrations causing the response, is 0.01 mg/L. The stable response from Bio-DGT under various conditions (pH 4-8, ionic strengths 0.01-0.5 M) and 30 days storage time suggest the applicability of the technique in real environments. The deployment of Bio-DGT in contaminated soils demonstrated that Cd toxicity was regulated by labile concentration, showing its potential application for the risk assessment of heavy metal contaminations, and its further feasibility in using Bio-DGT for measuring integration of multiple contaminants' effects and simultaneously determine the main toxicity driver(s).

Non-corresponding contaminants in marine surface sediments as a factor of ARGs spread in the Sea of Azov

The present study aims to analyze the level and total toxicity of the most common pollutants in surface sediments and assess their impact on the occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the Sea of Azov. Biotesting using the whole-cell bacterial lux-biosensors showed high integral toxicity of surface sediments and the presence of genotoxicants and substances that cause oxidative stress and protein damage. Using cluster analysis, it was shown that the distribution of pollutants in the Sea of Azov depends on the type of surface sediments. The relative abundance and distribution of 14 ARGs in surface sediments were shown. Principle component analyses results suggest that non-corresponding contaminants do not exert direct influence on the ARGs abundance in the surface sediments of the Sea of Azov. Thus, the need to investigate the significance of non-corresponding pollutants in the selection and distribution of ARGs in the aquatic environment remains a pressing problem.

Effects of Different Heat Treatment Methods on Organic Pollutants and Heavy Metal Content in Oil Sludge Waste and Ecotoxicological Evaluation

The discharge of large amounts of oily sludge heat treatment residues constitutes a severe threat to the environment. However, little is known about the toxicity of these heat-treated residues. Current research has mainly focused on the toxic effects of single heavy metals or single hydrocarbons on plants, whereas the phytotoxic effects of hydrocarbon–metal mixtures have remained largely unexplored. In this study, pot experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of different proportions of heat treatment residues (pyrolysis, heat-washing, and high-temperature oxidation residues) from three kinds of oily sludge on the physiological and biochemical parameters of mung bean plants. Higher proportions of residues decreased the germination rates and enzyme activity of mung beans compared to uncontaminated soil. When pyrolysis residue, hot-washing residue, and high-temperature thermal oxidation residue are used in green planting soil, their content must be lower than 30%, 90%, and 70%, respectively. Additionally, our findings indicated that the accumulation level of pollutants in oily sludge heat treatment residues was not high. However, the three kinds of residues exhibited different degrees of plant toxicity. The pyrolysis residue still exhibited strong ecotoxicity, even at low concentrations. In contrast, the toxicity of the hot-washing residue was much lower than that of the pyrolysis residue and the high-temperature thermal oxidation residue. Our findings indicated that mung bean is highly tolerant of contaminated soil and is therefore well suited for phytoremediation applications.