Decolorization of Methylene Blue and Crystal Violet by Some Filamentous Fungi

Abstract

Five strains of filamentous fungi were studied to ability a removal of Methylene Blue (MB) and Crystal Violet (CV). These fungi were Rhizopus stolinifer, Aspergillus fumigates, Aspergillus niger, Fusarium solani and Penicillium funigulosum. F. solani and P.funigulosum showed that decolorization activity was higher than that of remaining 3 fungi on solid medium containing Methylene blue, although MB did not appear to interfere with the mycelia growth of A.fumigatus, this fungus was not able to effectively decolorize MB. In the present study all fungi strains showed a poor ability to decolorize Crystal violet, However the ability of A.fumigatus to decolorization of CV reached to 0.009, this fungus was higher than other fungi. Although CV did not appear to interfere with the mycelia of R.stolinifer and F.solani, these fungi that not able to effectively decolorize CV. There was a significance differences recorded with decolorization. The results showed that the dry weight of F.solani was higher than other fungi, the dry weight of this fungus reached to 0.092 gm with MB, and in the same time the dry weight of A.niger reached to 0.52 gm with CV. There was no significance recorded in dry weights of fungi at the 7 days of incubation.