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Isolation and characterization of heavy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria adapted to electrokinetic conditions

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Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-degrading bacteria capable of growing under electrokinetic conditions were isolated using an adjusted acclimation and enrichment procedure based on soil contaminated with heavy PAHs in the presence of an electric field. Their ability to degrade heavy PAHs under an electric field was individually investigated in artificially contaminated soils. The results showed that strains PB4 (Pseudomonas fluorescens) and FB6 (Kocuria sp.) were the most efficient heavy PAH degraders under electrokinetic conditions. They were re-inoculated into a polluted soil from an industrial site with a PAH concentration of 184.95 mg kg−1. Compared to the experiments without an electric field, the degradation capability of Pseudomonas fluorescens and Kocuria sp. was enhanced in the industrially polluted soil under electrokinetic conditions. The degradation extents of total PAHs were increased by 15.4 and 14.0 % in the electrokinetic PB4 and FB6 experiments (PB4 + EK and FB6 + EK) relative to the PB4 and FB6 experiments without electrokinetic conditions (PB4 and FB6), respectively. These results indicated that P. fluorescens and Kocuria sp. could efficiently degrade heavy PAHs under electrokinetic conditions and have the potential to be used for the electro-bioremediation of PAH-contaminated soil, especially if the soil is contaminated with heavy PAHs.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21047006), Major Science and Technology Program for Water Pollution Control and Treatment (No. 2013ZX07202-007) and the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (No. 2013AA06A210). We thank Kerusha Lutchmiah of KWR Watercycle Research Institute for proof reading the final manuscript. We thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments that helped improve this manuscript.

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  1. Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110016, China

    Fengmei Li, Shuhai Guo & Ye Yuan

  2. KWR Watercycle Research Institute, 3433 PE, Nieuwegein, The Netherlands

    Niels Hartog

  3. Shenyang University, Shenyang, 110014, China

    Xuelian Yang

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  1. Fengmei Li
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Li, F., Guo, S., Hartog, N. et al. Isolation and characterization of heavy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria adapted to electrokinetic conditions. Biodegradation 27, 1–13 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10532-015-9750-5

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