Isolation, Selection, and Use of Oil-Degrading Microorganisms for Biological Treatment of Contaminated Soil

Abstract

Oil is the backbone of the global fuel and energy economy. The extraction, transport, and use of oil and its products pollute the environment -soil, water, and air -endangering living organisms in ecosystems and human health.Between 0.08% and 0.4% of the world's annual oil production is estimated to be released into the environment as pollutants. The amount of oil released into the environment is increasing every year and causing more and more environmental problems. Many methods of cleaning the environment from these pollutants are known, but not all of them are effective

Molecular Isolation, Screening and Identification of Hydrocarbon Degrading Fungi from Oil Contaminated Soils, Iraq

“…2b) led to the conclusion that HDF isolates, as opposed to THF strains, exhibited greater efficiency in utilizing crude oil as their exclusive carbon source and energy source [5]. These observations align with earlier conclusions made by previous researchers in a similar context [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. Furthermore, it was obvious had a frequency of occurrence of 92%, while THF accounted for only 8% (Fig.…”

“…2a). This high occurrence of HDF bears ecological implications, signifying the adaptability of these fungi to the challenging environment of oilcontaminated soil, likely due to their ability to utilize hydrocarbons as a carbon source for growth [5]. This ecological adaptation positions them as crucial contributors to the natural mitigation of hydrocarbon pollutants in the environment [15].…”

“…Existing research has indicated that, while morphological characteristics can effectively differentiate isolates into their respective phyla and, in many instances, the correct genera, it is always advisable to use a combination of several methods. This is because the characterization and identification of unknown fungal isolates can be fraught with errors when relying solely on a single method [5,18,19,32].…”

“…In natural ecosystems, several research endeavors have revealed that petroleum hydrocarbons undergo biodegradation, primarily facilitated by diverse communities of both bacteria and fungi [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Fungi, as eukaryotic organisms, stand out as highly proficient entities for breaking down oil hydrocarbon compounds [7].…”