Abstract
The naproxen-degrading bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis B1(2015b) was immobilised onto loofah sponge and introduced into lab-scale trickling filters. The trickling filters constructed for this study additionally contained stabilised microflora from a functioning wastewater treatment plant to assess the behavior of introduced immobilized biocatalyst in a fully functioning bioremediation system. The immobilised cells degraded naproxen (1 mg/L) faster in the presence of autochthonous microflora than in a monoculture trickling filter. There was also abundant colonization of the loofah sponges by the microorganisms from the system. Analysis of the influence of an acute, short-term naproxen exposure on the indigenous community revealed a significant drop in its diversity and qualitative composition. Bioaugmentation was also not neutral to the microflora. Introducing a new microorganism and increasing the removal of the pollutant caused changes in the microbial community structure and species composition. The incorporation of the immobilised B1(2015b) was successful and the introduced strain colonized the basic carrier in the trickling filter after the complete biodegradation of the naproxen. As a result, the bioremediation system could potentially be used to biodegrade naproxen in the future.
Highlights
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products are nowadays being detected in surface water and groundwater more and more frequently
It was observed that the age of a culture that is used for immobilization has a significant influence on the metabolic activity of a biofilm
Because the efficiency of bioremediation using a trickling filter depends on the quality of the biofilm that is formed, its parameters for immobilization were optimized by adsorption on loofah sponge
Summary
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products are nowadays being detected in surface water and groundwater more and more frequently. One of the drugs that can affect entire ecosystems is naproxen (2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionic acid), which is a polycyclic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). This drug is not metabolized by humans and wastewater treatment plants do not have strains that are capable of degrading naproxen with high efficiency. It has been proven that the naproxen phototransformation products are often more toxic than the drug itself [1]. Is naproxen released into the environment, and the products of its phototransformation
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