Emerging Pollutants and Their Bioremediation with the Help of Fungi
摘要
Industrial waste, contaminated materials, and toxic waste being released into the environment is one of the most problematic aspects of continuous activities and industrialization. Such contaminants are known to cause disruption in nature which eventually manifests itself in ecological and environmental processes. These contaminants have a fatal impact on a variety of organisms including humans. Fertilizers, pesticides, dyes, pharmaceuticals, explosive waste, and PAHs are examples of environmental contaminants. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons consist of at least two aromatic ring structures and occur majorly in fossil fuels. Some widely present PAHs include phenanthrene, anthracene, naphthalene, fluoranthene, and dibenzofuran. Organometallic compounds consist of bonds between a metal and carbon atom. These compounds consist of both metals and metalloids. There are several degradation techniques of these pollutants such as phytoremediation which makes use of different types of plants in degradation of toxic wastes. Besides, rhizoremediation uses plants and rhizospheric microorganisms in remediating industrial waste. Among all the techniques, microbial remediation has proved to be the most effective one. Bioremediation is a natural process of removal of contaminants, pollutants, and toxins from soil, water, and various other environments. The use of microorganisms’ bioremediation ability in such a way that it can fasten the processes proves their worth in clarifying the ecosystem. There mediation of these pollutants by fungi is known as mycoremediation. These are diverse organisms and have multiple roles in degradation of contaminants. There are certain classes of enzymes which are derived from fungi and can be used in effective degradation of industrial waste. The present review gives an overview of the sources, nature, fate, and classification of PAHs and organometallic pollutants, fungal degradation of these pollutants by different species.