Dye degradation by early colonizing marine bacteria from the Arabian Sea, India

Abstract

Malachite green (MG) dye belongs to the triphenylmethane group, a common environmental pollutant that threatens non-target organisms. The potential of the early colonizing marine bacterium Pseudomonas sp. ESPS40 isolated from the Arabian Sea, India, to decolorize malachite green (MG) was assessed in the present study. The bacterium ESPS40 exhibited a higher ability for MG degradation (86-88%) at varying NaCl concentrations (1-3%). The most increased MG degradation (~88%) was observed at 1% NaCl. The strain ESPS40 showed degradation up to 800 mg MG L-1 concentration. Further, enzyme activities such as tyrosinase (63.48-526.52 U L-1) and laccase (3.62-28.20 U L-1) were also analyzed with varying concentrations (100 mg L-1-1000 mg L-1) of MG during the degradation process. The dye degradation was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The outcome of the present study demonstrated the potential of Pseudomonas sp. ESPS40 for efficient degradation of MG at higher concentrations. Thus, the bacterial strain (Pseudomonas sp. ESPS40) can be utilized as a potential candidate for the biodegradation of MG in wastewater treatment.