Biodegradation potential of petroleum hydrocarbons in the rhizosphere of indigenous plants

Due to environmental problems, petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) should be clean up using efficient remediation methods like phytoremediation. Identification of biodegradation potential in the rhizosphere of plants grown in the petroleum-contaminated soil may be an important step toward the developed phytoremediation. In this study, PCR and hybridization analysis of DNA from several rhizospheric soils revealed prevalence of hydrocarbon catabolic genes in the rhizosphere of indigenous plants. 16S rDNA gene sequencing of isolated rhizobacteria, able to grow in presence of petroleum, demonstrated the majority of Proteobacteria, which can utilize a wide range of PHCs including alkanes and aromatics. In general, results of this study indicated that rhizosphere of indigenous plants from petroleum contaminated soils have a relatively notable potential for biodegradation of PHCs contaminants

Biodegradation potential of petroleum hydrocarbons in the rhizosphere of indigenous plants Keywords:

Petroleum hydrocarbons , indigenous plants , rhizosphere and biodegradation