Author/Authors :
Lalevic، B نويسنده Faculty of agriculture, Department of microbial ecology, Belgrade-Zemun, Serbia , , Raicevic، V نويسنده Faculty of agriculture, Department of microbial ecology, Belgrade-Zemun, Serbia , , Kikovic، D نويسنده Faculty of natural sciences, Kosovska Mitrovica, Serbia , , Jovanovic، L نويسنده Educons University, Sremska Kamenica, Serbia , , Surlan، G نويسنده Faculty of agriculture, Department of microbial ecology, Belgrade-Zemun, Serbia , , Jovic، J نويسنده Institute for plant protection and environment, Department of Plant Pests, Belgrade-Zemun, Serbia , , Talaie، A.R نويسنده Jami Institute of Technology , , Morina، F نويسنده Institute for multidisciplinary researches, Belgrade, Serbia ,
Abstract :
Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) belongs to the group of gasoline oxygenates and persistent
environment contaminants, and shows potential for biodegradation in aerobic and anaerobic conditions, through
application of pure microbial cultures. Presented research shows that indigenous bacterial isolates 6sy and
24p, selected from oil hydrocarbons-contaminated environments, were capable of utilizing MTBE as sole
carbon and energy source. Based on 16S rDNA sequence analysis, bacterial isolates 6sy and 24p were identified
as Staphylococcus saprophyticus subsp. saprophyticus and Pseudomonas sp., respectively. The MTBE
biodegradation rate was affected by longevity of incubation period and initial MTBE concentration. After 3
weeks of incubation at 25°C in a dark, the removal rates of initial 25 and 125 ppm MTBE concentrations by
Staphylococcus saprophyticus 6sy were found to be 97, and 63%, respectively, while efficiency of Pseudomonas
sp. in degradation of indicated concentrations was 96, and 40%, respectively. Both bacterial isolates were able
to grow in MTBE-containing growth medium. Highest growth rate of bacterial isolates was observed at the end
of incubation period. The presented results indicated the potential of these bacterial isolates in bioremediation
of MTBE-contaminated environments.
