Filamentous Fungi for Sustainable Remediation of Pharmaceutical Compounds, Heavy Metal and Oil Hydrocarbons

Author: mycolabadmin
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Summary

This research examines how certain types of fungi can be used to clean up environmental pollution in a sustainable way. These fungi can break down pharmaceutical waste, remove toxic metals, and degrade oil spills while also producing valuable byproducts in the process. This natural approach to environmental cleanup has several practical impacts: • Provides an eco-friendly way to treat contaminated water and soil without using harsh chemicals • Offers a cost-effective method for removing pharmaceutical pollutants from wastewater • Creates useful products like animal feed and industrial chemicals from the treatment process • Helps clean up oil spills and industrial pollution using natural organisms • Reduces environmental toxins that can harm human health and ecosystems

Background

Filamentous fungi have emerged as important tools for bioremediation due to their diverse cellular mechanisms and ability to degrade various pollutants. These fungi possess capabilities including bio-adsorption, bio-surfactant production, bio-mineralization, bio-precipitation, and both extracellular and intracellular enzymatic processes that make them effective at removing contaminants from wastewater and polluted environments.

Objective

This review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of the latest research in bioremediation using filamentous fungi, focusing specifically on recent progress in remediation of pharmaceutical compounds, heavy metal treatment, and oil hydrocarbons mycoremediation. The review examines cellular mechanisms, wastewater treatment processes, fungal species diversity, beneficial byproducts, challenges faced, and future prospects.

Results

The review found that filamentous fungi can effectively remove 78-100% of pharmaceutical compounds within 24 hours to 10 days, achieve heavy metal removal efficiencies of 81-99% within 48 hours, and degrade 30-99% of crude oil within 3-10 days. Various species of Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, and other genera demonstrated high remediation capabilities. The fungi also produce valuable byproducts including biomass for feed, chitosan, ethanol, enzymes, organic acids, and nanoparticles.

Conclusion

Filamentous fungi show great potential for sustainable bioremediation of various pollutants, though only a small percentage of fungal species have been tested so far. While there are some challenges including cost-effectiveness and bacterial competition, the ability to produce valuable byproducts contributes to sustainability. Future research opportunities exist in exploring more fungal species, understanding genetic mechanisms, and developing improved treatment processes.

Published in:Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology,
Study Type:Review,
Source: 10.3389/fbioe.2023.1106973