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Biodegradation of phenol
C. Indu
Nair, K. Jayachandran* and Shankar Shashidhar
School of
Biosciences, M.G.University, Kottayam, Kerala, India 686560.
*Corresponding author. E-mail:
jayan_chk@rediffmail.com.
Accepted
8 December, 2008 |
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The use of
microbial catalysts in the biodegradation of organic
compounds has advanced significantly during the past three
decades. It has been found that large numbers of microbes
co-exist in almost all natural environments, particularly in
soils. Many natural and synthetic organic chemicals are
readily biodegradable in natural environment. Biodegradation
of materials involve initial proximity, allowing adsorption
or physical access to the substrate, secretion of extra
cellular enzymes to degrade the substrates or uptake via
transport systems followed by intracellular metabolism. The
efficiency of biodegradation of organic compounds is
influenced by the type of the organic pollutant, the nature
of the organism, the enzyme involved, the mechanism of
degradation and the nature of the influencing factors.
Phenolic compounds are hazardous pollutants that are toxic
at relatively low concentration. Accumulation of phenol
creates toxicity both for flora
and fauna.
Since phenol is toxic and cause pollution, it must be
removed from the environment.
Key words:
Biodegradation, organic compounds, pollution. |
