Fishing out microorganisms for bioremediation using metagenomics: Isolation and whole-genome sequencing of the metabolically versatile Rhodococcus erythropolis LP27217 strain from oil spill lake.

Isolating microorganisms from oil spill-contaminated environments is essential for advancing bioremediation strategies and discovering novel bioprocesses for hydrocarbon degradation. In this study, we report the isolation of a novel strain, Rhodococcus erythropolis LP27217, from Pertusillo Lake (Italy) on february 2017. Water samples were collected during an oil spill event and microbial community was previously characterized using 16S rRNA gene-targeted metagenomic analysis and functional prediction.

Anaerobic sludge digestion enhancement with bioelectrochemical and electrically conductive materials augmentation: A state of the art review.

Excess biological sludge processing and disposal have a significant impact on the energy balance and economics of wastewater treatment operations, and on receiving environments. Anaerobic digestion is probably the most widespread in-plant sludge processing method globally, since it stabilizes and converts biosolids organic matter into biogas, allowing partial recovery of their embedded chemical energy. A considerable number of studies concerning applicable techniques to improve biogas production, both in quantity and quality, include pre-treatment strategies to promote biosolids disintegration aimed at the release and solubilization of intracellular energy compounds, inorganic/biological amendments aimed at improving process performance, and sludge thermal pre-treatment.

Groundwater electro-bioremediation via diffuse electro-conductive zones: A critical review.

Microbial electrochemical technologies (MET) can remove a variety of organic and inorganic pollutants from contaminated groundwater. However, despite significant laboratory-scale successes over the past decade, field-scale applications remain limited. We hypothesize that enhancing the electrochemical conductivity of the soil surrounding electrodes could be a groundbreaking and cost-effective alternative to deploying numerous high-surface-area electrodes in short distances.

Anaerobic treatment of groundwater co-contaminated by toluene and copper in a single chamber bioelectrochemical system.

Addressing the simultaneous removal of multiple coexisting groundwater contaminants poses a significant challenge, primarily because of their different physicochemical properties. Indeed, different chemical compounds may necessitate establishing distinct, and sometimes conflicting, (bio)degradation and/or removal pathways. In this work, we investigated the concomitant anaerobic treatment of toluene and copper in a single-chamber bioelectrochemical cell with a potential difference of 1 V applied between the anode and the cathode.

Enrichment of Aerobic and Anaerobic Hydrocarbon-Degrading Bacteria from Multicontaminated Marine Sediment in Mar Piccolo Site (Taranto, Italy).

Marine sediments act as a sink for the accumulation of various organic contaminants such as polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs). These contaminants affect the composition and activity of microbial communities, particularly favoring those capable of thriving from their biodegradation and biotransformation under favorable conditions. Hence, contaminated environments represent a valuable biological resource for the exploration and cultivation of microorganisms with bioremediation potential.

Toluene-driven anaerobic biodegradation of chloroform in a continuous-flow bioelectrochemical reactor.

Subsurface co-contamination by multiple pollutants can be challenging for the design of bioremediation strategies since it may require promoting different and often antagonistic degradation pathways. Here, we investigated the simultaneous degradation of toluene and chloroform (CF) in a continuous-flow anaerobic bioelectrochemical reactor. As a result, 47 μmol L d of toluene and 60 μmol L d of CF were concurrently removed, when the anode was polarized at +0.

Enhancing the Anaerobic Biodegradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Soils with Electrically Conductive Materials.

Anaerobic bioremediation is a relevant process in the management of sites contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons. Recently, interspecies electron transfer processes mediated by conductive minerals or particles have been proposed as mechanisms through which microbial species within a community share reducing equivalents to drive the syntrophic degradation of organic substrates, including hydrocarbons. Here, a microcosm study was set up to investigate the effect of different electrically conductive materials (ECMs) in enhancing the anaerobic biodegradation of hydrocarbons in historically contaminated soil.

Passive electrobioremediation approaches for enhancing hydrocarbons biodegradation in contaminated soils.

Electrobioremediation technologies hold considerable potential for the treatment of soils contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons (PH), since they allow stimulating biodegradation processes with no need for subsurface chemicals injection and with little to no energy consumption. Here, a microbial electrochemical snorkel (MES) was applied for the treatment of a soil contaminated by hydrocarbons. The MES consists of direct coupling of a microbial anode with a cathode, being a single conductive, non-polarized material positioned suitably to create an electrochemical connection between the anoxic zone (the contaminated soil) and the oxic zone (the overlying oxygenated water).

Snorkels enhance alkanes respiration at ambient and increased hydrostatic pressure (10 MPa) by either supporting the TCA cycle or limiting alternative routes for acetyl-CoA metabolism.

The impact of piezosensitive microorganisms is generally underestimated in the ecology of underwater environments exposed to increasing hydrostatic pressure (HP), including the biodegradation of crude oil components. Yet, no isolated pressure-loving (piezophile) microorganism grows optimally on hydrocarbons, and no isolated piezophile at all has a HP optimum <10 MPa (e.g.

An underappreciated DIET for anaerobic petroleum hydrocarbon-degrading microbial communities.

Direct interspecies electron transfer (DIET) via electrically conductive minerals can play a role in the anaerobic oxidation of petroleum hydrocarbons in contaminated sites and can be exploited for the development of new, more effective bioremediation approaches.

Microbiomes in Soils Exposed to Naturally High Concentrations of CO (Bossoleto Mofette Tuscany, Italy).

Direct and indirect effects of extremely high geogenic CO levels, commonly occurring in volcanic and hydrothermal environments, on biogeochemical processes in soil are poorly understood. This study investigated a sinkhole in Italy where long-term emissions of thermometamorphic-derived CO are associated with accumulation of carbon in the topsoil and removal of inorganic carbon in low pH environments at the bottom of the sinkhole. The comparison between interstitial soil gasses and those collected in an adjacent bubbling pool and the analysis of the carbon isotopic composition of CO and CH clearly indicated the occurrence of CH oxidation and negligible methanogenesis in soils at the bottom of the sinkhole.

Bioelectrochemical treatment of groundwater containing BTEX in a continuous-flow system: Substrate interactions, microbial community analysis, and impact of sulfate as a co-contaminant.

Microbial electrochemical technologies (MET) are increasingly being considered for in situ remediation of contaminated groundwater. However, their application potential for the simultaneous treatment of complex mixtures of organic and inorganic contaminants, has been only marginally explored. Here we have analyzed the performance of the 'bioelectric well', a previously developed bioelectrochemical reactor configuration, in the treatment of benzene, toluene, ethyl-benzene and xylenes (BTEX) mixtures.

Cable Bacteria and the Bioelectrochemical Snorkel: The Natural and Engineered Facets Playing a Role in Hydrocarbons Degradation in Marine Sediments.

The composition and metabolic traits of the microbial communities acting in an innovative bioelectrochemical system were here investigated. The system, known as Oil Spill Snorkel, was recently developed to stimulate the oxidative biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in anoxic marine sediments. Next Generation Sequencing was used to describe the microbiome of the bulk sediment and of the biofilm growing attached to the surface of the electrode.

The "Oil-Spill Snorkel": an innovative bioelectrochemical approach to accelerate hydrocarbons biodegradation in marine sediments.

This study presents the proof-of-concept of the "Oil-Spill Snorkel": a novel bioelectrochemical approach to stimulate the oxidative biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in sediments. The "Oil-Spill Snorkel" consists of a single conductive material (the snorkel) positioned suitably to create an electrochemical connection between the anoxic zone (the contaminated sediment) and the oxic zone (the overlying O2-containing water). The segment of the electrode buried within the sediment plays a role of anode, accepting electrons deriving from the oxidation of contaminants.

Magnetite particles triggering a faster and more robust syntrophic pathway of methanogenic propionate degradation.

Interspecies electron transfer mechanisms between Bacteria and Archaea play a pivotal role during methanogenic degradation of organic matter in natural and engineered anaerobic ecosystems. Growing evidence suggests that in syntrophic communities electron transfer does not rely exclusively on the exchange of diffusible molecules and energy carriers such as hydrogen or formate, rather microorganisms have the capability to exchange metabolic electrons in a more direct manner. Here, we show that supplementation of micrometer-size magnetite (Fe3O4) particles to a methanogenic sludge enhanced (up to 33%) the methane production rate from propionate, a key intermediate in the anaerobic digestion of organic matter and a model substrate to study energy-limited syntrophic communities.

Metabolic analysis of the removal of formic acid by unacclimated activated sludge.

This paper investigates the removal of formic acid by unacclimated biomass from a municipal activated sludge wastewater treatment plant. The biomass was initially able to remove formic acid, but its removal rate and Oxygen Uptake Rate (OUR) decreased with time, until formic acid removal stopped before the formic acid had been exhausted. Formaldehyde was removed in a similar way, whereas the same biomass was simultaneously able to grow and store PHAs when acetic acid was used as substrate.

Isolation and quantification of cadmium removal mechanisms in batch reactors inoculated by sulphate reducing bacteria: biosorption versus bioprecipitation.

Biosorbing properties of sulphate reducing bacteria were tested to distinguish the amount of cadmium removed by bioprecipitation from that bound onto biomass surface (biosorption). Experimental results of cadmium abatement in batch growth tests (bioprecipitation tests) were then compared with metabolism-independent binding properties of SRB cell wall surface (biosorption tests performed with dead biomass). Experimental results showed that SRB inoculum removed 59 + or - 5% of sulphates in 21 days even in presence of cadmium (0-36 mmol L(-1)), while non-monotonous kinetic effects were observed for increasing Cd concentrations.

Assessment of solid reactive mixtures for the development of biological permeable reactive barriers.

Solid reactive mixtures were tested as filling material for the development of biological permeable reactive barriers for the treatment of heavy metals contaminated waters. Mixture selection was performed by taking into account the different mechanisms operating in sulphate and cadmium removal with particular attention to bioprecipitation and sorption onto the organic matrices in the mixtures. Suspensions of eight reactive mixtures were tested for sulphate removal (initial concentration 3 g L(-1)).