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Li Z, Rosenzweig R, Chen F, Qin J, Li T, Han J, Istvan P, Diaz-Reck D, Gelman F, Arye G, Ronen Z. Bioremediation of Petroleum-Contaminated Soils with Biosurfactant-Producing Degraders Isolated from the Native Desert Soils. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10112267. [PMID: 36422337 PMCID: PMC9694877 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10112267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2022] [Revised: 11/02/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A crude oil spill in 2014 resulted in extensive soil contamination of the hyper arid Evrona Nature Reserve in Israel's Negev Desert. The contaminated soils became highly hydrophobic, threatening the existence of plants in the habitat. We hypothesized that bioaugmenting the soil with indigenous biosurfactant-producing, hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria (HDB) would accelerate the reduction in the soil's hydrophobicity. We aimed to isolate and characterize biosurfactant-producing HDBs from the desert-contaminated soil and test if they can be used for augmenting the soil. Twelve hydrocarbon-degrading strains were isolated, identified as Pseudomonas, and classified as biosurfactants "producing" and "nonproducing". Inoculating 109 CFU/g of "producing" strains into the polluted soil resulted in a 99.2% reduction in soil hydrophobicity within seven days. At the same time, nonproducing strains reduced hydrophobicity by only 17%, while no change was observed in the untreated control. The microbial community in the inoculated soil was dominated by the introduced strains over 28 days, pointing to their persistence. Rhamnolipid biosynthesis gene rhlAB remained persistent in soil inoculated with biosurfactants, indicating in situ production. We propose that the success of the treatment is due to the use of inoculum enriched from the polluted soil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Li
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
- Geological Survey of Israel, 32 Yeshayahu Leibowitz St., Jerusalem 9692100, Israel; (R.R.); (F.G.)
| | - Ravid Rosenzweig
- Geological Survey of Israel, 32 Yeshayahu Leibowitz St., Jerusalem 9692100, Israel; (R.R.); (F.G.)
| | - Fengxian Chen
- French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (F.C.); (T.L.); (G.A.)
| | - Ji Qin
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
| | - Tianyi Li
- French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (F.C.); (T.L.); (G.A.)
| | - Jincheng Han
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
| | - Paula Istvan
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
| | - Damiana Diaz-Reck
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
| | - Faina Gelman
- Geological Survey of Israel, 32 Yeshayahu Leibowitz St., Jerusalem 9692100, Israel; (R.R.); (F.G.)
| | - Gilboa Arye
- French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (F.C.); (T.L.); (G.A.)
| | - Zeev Ronen
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, Be’er Sheva 8499000, Israel; (L.Z.); (J.Q.); (J.H.); (P.I.); (D.D.-R.)
- Correspondence:
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