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Biosorption of arsenic through bacteria isolated from Pakistan

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to isolate arsenic-resistant bacteria and to further exploit it for remediation purposes. In the present study, we have isolated arsenic-resistant strain from ground water of Pakistan AT-01. The strain was cultivated at 37 °C in Luria Bertani broth supplemented with different concentrations of arsenate and arsenite. The minimum inhibitory concentration of arsenic against the bacterial isolate was 7 g/L (7000 mg/L) for arsenate and 1.4 g/L (1400 mg/L) for arsenite salt. The bacterial isolate was also characterized both on molecular and biochemical basis. The isolated strain belonged to the Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The high resistance against arsenic offered by the bacteria was exploited further for bioremediation purposes. The bacterial biomass generated from AT-01 strain was able to efficiently remove arsenic with 98% efficiency. Arsenic contamination of ground water is a widespread worldwide problem. The present study shows the potential of high arsenic-resistant bacteria for efficient arsenic removal.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Dr. Zobia Noureen for her technical support during this study.

Funding

This project is funded by the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, grant no. 20-3777/R&D/HEC/14.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biosciences, Comsats University Islamabad, (Islamabad Campus), Islamabad, Pakistan

    Aamira Tariq, Ubaid Ullah & Irfan Sadiq

  2. Hazara University, Mansehra, Pakistan

    Maleeha Asif

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  1. Aamira Tariq
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  2. Ubaid Ullah
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  3. Maleeha Asif
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  4. Irfan Sadiq
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Correspondence to Aamira Tariq.

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Tariq, A., Ullah, U., Asif, M. et al. Biosorption of arsenic through bacteria isolated from Pakistan. Int Microbiol 22, 59–68 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-018-0028-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10123-018-0028-8

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