Halophilic Bacteria as a Promising Basis of Biopreparations for Improving the Growth of Autochthonous Strains-Destructors in Salinization Conditions

Institute of Ecology and Genetics of Microorganisms of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences – branch of the Perm Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

^* Corresponding author: ludaananyina@mail.ru

Abstract

In some cases, pollution of ecosystems with persistent toxic organic compounds, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), is accompanied by salinization, which significantly inhibits the degradation of these compounds by autochthonous communities of microorganisms. Therefore, new methods of reclamation of such polluted territories are being sought and developed. One of the approaches can be the introduction of bacteria that stimulate the physiological activity of autochthonous destructors. In the course of the conducted study, the moderately halophilic strain Halomonas sp. SMB31 was identified as the most competitive for the intermediates of the destruction of naphthalene (model compound PAH), and its effect on the growth of the halotolerant destructor strain Rhodococcus sp. SMB38 has been evaluated during the degradation of naphthalene under conditions of high salinity (7% NaCl). It is shown that the joint cultivation of Rhodococcus sp. SMB38 and Halomonas sp. SMB31 led to a significant reduction in the duration of the period of adaptation to environmental conditions and an increase in the specific growth rate of the destructor strain. Thus, the obtained results showed the prospects of the studied moderately halophilic strain Halomonas sp. SMB31 for use as a biological preparation for the purpose of activating the physiological processes of autochthonous microorganisms-destructors under conditions of salinization of the environment.