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Assessment of the horizontal transfer of functional genes as a suitable approach for evaluation of the bioremediation potential of petroleum-contaminated sites: a mini-review

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Abstract

Petroleum sludge contains recalcitrant residuals. These compounds because of being toxic to humans and other organism are of the major concerns. Therefore, petroleum sludge should be safely disposed. Physicochemical methods which are used by this sector are mostly expensive and need complex devices. Bioremediation methods because of being eco-friendly and cost-effective overcome most of the limitations of physicochemical treatments. Microbial strains capable to degrade petroleum hydrocarbons are practically present in all soils and sediments and their population density increases in contact with contaminants. Bacterial strains cannot degrade alone all kinds of petroleum hydrocarbons, rather microbial consortium should collaborate with each other for degradation of petroleum hydrocarbon mixtures. Horizontal transfer of functional genes between bacteria plays an important role in increasing the metabolic potential of the microbial community. Therefore, selecting a suitable degrading gene and tracking its horizontal transfer would be a useful approach to evaluate the bioremediation process and to assess the bioremediation potential of contaminated sites.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Republic of Turkish Association of Science and Technology (TUBITAK) (project No. 114Y014) and Iran’s National Elites Foundation (INEF) for their support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Animal Biology Department, Faculty of Natural Science, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

    Aiyoub Shahi

  2. Institute of Environmental Sciences, Boğaziçi University, Bebek, 34342, Istanbul, Turkey

    Bahar Ince

  3. Department of Environmental Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, 34469, Istanbul, Turkey

    Sevcan Aydin & Orhan Ince

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  1. Aiyoub Shahi
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Aiyoub Shahi declares that he has no conflict of interest. Bahar Ince declares that she has no conflict of interest. Sevcan Aydin declares that she has no conflict of interest. Orhan Ince declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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Shahi, A., Ince, B., Aydin, S. et al. Assessment of the horizontal transfer of functional genes as a suitable approach for evaluation of the bioremediation potential of petroleum-contaminated sites: a mini-review. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 101, 4341–4348 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-017-8306-5

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