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Discovering Decolorization Potential of Triphenylmethane Dyes by Actinobacteria from Soil

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Abstract

This study investigates the decolorization potential of actinobacteria from soil towards toxic triphenylmethane (TPM) dyes, i.e., malachite green (MG), methyl violet (MV), crystal violet (CV), and cotton blue (CB). The actinobacterial isolates were first isolated from fresh soil samples, plated onto actinomycetes isolation agar (AIA), and both live and dead cells were prepared to evaluate their decolorization efficiency (DE). Isolates with positive decolorization activities were identified via partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA region. They were revealed as species of Nocardiopsis (N. alba), Streptomyces (S. puniceus, S. bacillaris, S. albolongus, S. acidiscabies, S. albulus, S. pratensis, S. luridiscabiei, S. rubiginosus, S. albidochromogenes), Rhodococcus (R. sovatensis), and Kitasatospora (K. albolonga). Results indicated that all 12 actinobacterial strains (live cells and dead cells) were able to decolorize TPM dyes, although with varying degree of effectiveness. Isolate N. alba (live cells) achieved the highest DE, with 97.0, 95.1, 95.8, and 83.8% (day 14) for MG, MV, CV, and CB, respectively. This was followed by live cells of S. bacillaris with 94.7, 95.1, 90.5, and 63.9% of DE for the same dyes. Live cells appeared to be more effective in decolorizing TPM dyes, suggesting the possible biosorption and biodegradation of dyes. It is concluded that soil actinobacteria tested in this study have the potential for removal of TPM dyes.

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Data Availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, upon request.

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The authors would like to thank Monash University Malaysia for the research funding and facilities.

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The research was funded by Monash University Malaysia.

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  1. School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, 47500, Bandar Sunway, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

    Nurul Hidayah Adenan, Yau Yan Lim & Adeline Su Yien Ting

  2. School of Biology, Faculty of Applied Sciences, MARA University of Technology (UiTM), Kuala Pilah Campus, Pekan Parit Tinggi, 72000, Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia

    Nurul Hidayah Adenan

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Adenan, N.H., Lim, Y.Y. & Ting, A.S.Y. Discovering Decolorization Potential of Triphenylmethane Dyes by Actinobacteria from Soil. Water Air Soil Pollut 231, 560 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-020-04928-w

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