Isolation, Characterization and Identification of Anthracene Degrading Bacteria Occurring In Oil Contaminated Soils of Mechanical Workshops

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) released from various sources are accumulating in the environment. Some of the PAHs recommended by USEPA are highly toxic to living organisms. Anthracene is included in such toxic class of PAHs. When PAHs persist in the environment they cause deleterious effect to human beings and even they decrease crop productivity by polluting agricultural lands. Physical and chemical methods employed to remove PAHs from polluted soils are ineffective. Instead, microbes can be employed to metabolize PAHS occurring in contaminated soils. In the present paper, PAH selected for biodegradation studies is anthracene. Oil contaminated soil samples were collected from six mechanical workshops, processed in the laboratory and eighteen anthracene degrading bacteria were isolated and identified till genus level. Six bacterial isolates were identified as Pseudomonas, five were Serratia, four were Bacillus and remaining three was identified as Acinetobacter species. These bacteria can be improved and employed for bioremediation process