NITRILE-METABOLIZING BACTERIAL STRAINS ASSOCIATED WITH MUNICIPAL WASTE TIPS IN THE LAGOS METROPOLIS, NIGERIA

Abstract

Cyanide is one of the dominant pollutants in the environment. This study aimed at exploring the potential of microbes in the detoxification of cyanogenic substances. Bacillus sp. WOD8 KX774193 and Corynebacterium sp. WOIS2 KX774194 strains were isolated from solid waste leachates. The doubling times of strain WOD8 and strain WOIS2 when grown on glutaronitrile and benzonitrile (without supplementing glucose) were 12.2 and 7.86 d (specific growth rate, μ: 0.057 and 0.088 d-1) and 15.75 and 13.33 d (specific growth rate, μ: 0.044 and 0.052 d-1) respectively. Also, strains WOD8 and WOIS2 grew on glutaronitrile and benzonitrile (with supplementing glucose) with doubling times of 9.76 and 7.62 d (μ: 0.071 and 0.091 d-1) and 10.5 and 8.15 d (μ: 0.066 and 0.085 d-1) respectively. The results from the present study suggest that the nitrile-metabolizing capabilities of these bacterial isolates can potentially be explored for the degradation and bioremediation of nitrile contamination in the environment.