Application of Surface Active Compounds of Microbial Origin to Clean up Soils Contaminated with Heavy Metals

COLIN VERÓNICA LETICIA; POLTI MARTA ALEJANDRA; AMOROSO MARIA JULIA

Metal- microbe interactions and bioremediation: Principle and applications for toxic metals

CRC Press Taylor and Francis Group

Año: 2016;

Soil contamination with heavy metals is one the most serious environmental problems, and more stringent regulations are necessary to confront this scourge. Although some metals perform specific biological functions, many other not have a known role. Thereby, both prokaryotic as eukaryotic cells possess homeostatic mechanisms to regulate its concentrations, minimizing the potentials toxic effects on living cells. Use of microbial surface active compounds instead of those obtained by chemical synthesis to enhance the recovery of metals and other pollutants from soils is more acceptable due to their natural origin and singular properties that include low toxicity and high biodegradability. In fact, current challenges such as the design of strategies to minimize production cost of these biomolecules at a large scale are being addressed successfully today. Application´s strategy of surface active compounds varies depending if the producing microorganism is present in the cleanup process of soil; or if these biomolecules are added to the soil washing solution without the presence of the producing microorganism. In any case, microbial surface active compounds tend to form complexes with heavy metals encouraging its effective desorption and removal from soil and sediments. Thereby, a significant reduction of these toxic until acceptable levels could be achieved through a natural and eco-friendly product without environmental damages.