Bioremediation of Some Deterioration Products from Sandstone of Archeological Karnak Temple Using Stimulated Irradiated Alkalo-Thermophilic Purified Microbial Enzymes

Abstract

The archeological temples of Karnak in Luxor city are the most important records of the history and civilization of Egypt that belonged to the Middle Kingdom to the reign of the Ptolemies. Many parts in Karnak temple are suffering from different types of biological deterioration products (visible fungal colonies, blood drops, and celluloytic wild bees’ nests). The deteriorated samples of archeological sandstone of Karnak temple were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) followed by energy dispersed X-ray analyses (EDX), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) investigations, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and polarizing microscope (PLM). The major component was quartz. In vitro antagonistic activity of Trichoderma reesei against deteriorative isolated fungal species on Karnak Temple stone was carried out. Trichoderma reesei and Fusarium oxysporum, a cellulolytic and fibrinolytic microorganism, were subjected to mutagenesis using three types of radiations (UV, gamma and laser radiation). Stimulation of cellulytic and fibrinolytic microbial enzymes were obtained after 5- and 7.5-min exposure times to laser irradiation in absence of the photosensitizer, respectively. Cellulolytic and fibrinolytic enzymes recovered from non-irradiated and irradiated microbial cells were purified to homogeneity by salting out with ammonium sulphate, dialysis and chromatography through (Sephadex G-200, Sephadex G-100 and diethylaminoethyl cellulose columns) and test for purity by simple polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis technique was carried out. The enzymes recovered from irradiated hyper-producing mutant microbes was found more efficient accompanied with low molecular weights compared with the non-irradiated purified enzymes. Characterization of the irradiated purified efficient enzymes revealed that the enzymes were alkalo-thermophilic.