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Mangroves are coastal ecosystems, found in tropical and subtropical regions around the world. They are found in the transitional zones between land, sea, and rivers. Petroleum hydrocarbons are the most common environmental pollutants, and oil spills pose a great hazard to mangroves forests. This research was focused on the isolation and characterization of crude oil‐degrading bacteria from mangrove ecosystems at the Persian Gulf. Sixty‐one crude oil‐degrading bacteria were isolated from mangrove samples (plant, sediment, and seawater) that enriched in ONR7a medium with crude oil as only carbon source. Some screening tests such as growth at high concentration of crude oil, bioemulsifier production, and surface hydrophobicity were done to select the most efficient strains for crude oil degradation. Molecular identification of strains was carried out by amplification of the 16S rRNA gene by PCR. The results of this study were indicated that the quantity of crude oil‐degrading bacteria was higher in the root of mangrove plants compare to other mangrove samples (sediment and seawater). Also, identification results confirmed that these isolated strains belong to Vibrio sp. strain NW4, Idiomarina sp. strain BW32, Kangiella sp. strain DP40, Marinobacter sp. strain DW44, Halomonas sp. strain BS53, and Vibrio sp. strain DS35. The application of bioremediation strategies with these bacteria can reduce crude oil pollution in this important marine environment.

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Background: Asafoetida (Ferula assa-foetida L.) is an endangered endemic plant which is widely used in food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries. It is necessary to enhance the quantity and quality of its secondary metabolites in order to meet requirements of the industries. Objective: This study investigated the impact of 24epibrassinolide (EBL) on biochemical traits, essential oil yield and chemical compositions of Ferula assa-foetida in its natural habitat. Methods: We foliar sprayed the EBL at the concentrations of 0, 0.1, 0.5 and 1 µM with three times during a week at fully matured leaves phase. One month after treatments application, leaf sampling and gum gathering of the plants was done and the mentioned parameters were measured. Results: ANOVA results indicated that 1 µM EBL showed the best results for chlorophyll a, b, total chlorophyll, carotenoids, reduced sugar and protein contents (17.77, 13.08, 31.57, 7.50, 40.45 and 0.34 mg/g FW). The main components of the essential oil are α-pinene (8.82 %), β-pinene (11.57 %) and myrcene (1.12 %) that showed a significant increase at 1 µM of EBL. Although, EBL at 0.5 µM was proved to be the best treatment for leaf total phenol content (79.37 mg/g FW) and sulfurous compounds such as: (E)-1-propenyl sec-butyl disulfide (51.48 %), bis (1-methyl propyl) disulfide (0.9 %) and n-propyl sec-butyl disulfide (0.41 %). The highest amount of flavonoids (146.18; 162.56 mg/g FW) and essential oil yield (7.91 %; 8.16 %) were obtained at 0.5 and 1 µM EBL concentrations, respectively compared to the control (6 %). Conclusion: Our results indicated the promising and positive effects of EBL, as an environmental friendly strategy, to improve oleo-gum quantity and quality.