Implications of SiO₂ nanoparticles for in vitro biodegradation of low-density polyethylene with potential isolates of Bacillus, Pseudomonas, and their synergistic effect on Vigna mungo growth

Abstract

In the natural environment, low-density polyethylene (LDPE) contamination is one of the major sources of pollution and creates the hazardous threat. Biodegradation is an eco-friendly approach to control such type of pollution and maintain the sustainable environment. The presence of nanoparticles influences the growth ability of polymer-degrading microbes. In the present study, SiO₂ nanoparticles were employed to scrutinize their effect on polymer biodegradation efficiency. LDPE containing minimal salt medium supplemented with SiO₂ nanoparticles (20 nm) at concentration of 0.01% w/v. Out of five bacterial strains, Bacillus sp. V8 and Pseudomonas sp. C 2 5 were found to be the most potential strains for polymer degradation. SiO₂ nanoparticles improved growth profiling by shifting in lag phase, and it was also found effective to increase the biodegradation efficiency of bacterial strains by means of λ-max shifts, and Fourier transform infrared analysis revealed the formation or alteration of the chemical structure of the degraded polymer. The values of λ-max were shifted 217–227, 211–226, 209–224, 210–225, and 214–224 in the presence of Bacillus sp. strain V8, Pseudomonas sp. strain C 2 5, Pseudomonas sp. strain V1, Acinetobacter sp. strain V4, and Paracoccus sp. strain B1 4-, respectively. Fourier transform infrared analysis showed absorption frequencies of bacteria-treated polymers corresponding to 3049, 3275, 3527.8, 2196, and 3034 and confirmed the C–H stretching, O–H stretching, and C≡H stretching, respectively. The study signifies the bacteria–nanoparticles interactions that significantly influence the competence of polymer degradation.

Keywords

Biodegradation / Nanoparticles / LDPE / FT-IR / Vigna mungo

References

[1] Albertsson AC, Erlandsson B, Hakkarainen M, Karlsson S. Molecular weight changes and polymeric matrix changes correlated with the formation of degradation products in biodegraded polyethylene. J Environ Polym Degrad, 1998, 6: 187-195

[2] Ali MI, Ahmed S, Robson G, Javed I, Ali N, Atiq N, Hameed A. Isolation and molecular characterization of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic degrading fungal isolates. J Basic Microbiol, 2014, 54(1): 18-27

[3] Arutchelvi J, Sudhakar M, Arkatkar A, Doble M, Bhaduri S, Uppara PV. Biodegradation of polyethylene and polypropylene. Indian J Biotechnol, 2008, 7(1): 9-22

[4] Augusta J, Müller RJ, Widdecke H. A rapid evaluation plate-test for the biodegradability of plastics. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol, 1993, 39(4–5): 673-678

[5] Balasubramanian V, Natarajan K, Hemambika B, Ramesh N, Sumathi CS, Kottaimuthu R, Rajesh Kannan V. High-density polyethylene (HDPE)-degrading potential bacteria from marine ecosystem of Gulf of Mannar, India. Lett Appl Microbiol, 2010, 51(2): 205-211

[6] Duza MB, Mastan SA. Optimization studies on cellulase production from Bacillus anthracis and Ochrobactrum anthropic (YZ1) isolated from soil. Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol, 2015, 3(2): 272-284

[7] Flores M, Colón N, Rivera O, Villalba N, Baez Y, Quispitupa D, Avalos J, Perales O (2004) A study of the growth curves of C. xerosis and E. coli bacteria in mediums containing cobalt ferrite nanoparticles. In: Materials Research Society Symposia Proceedings, Materials Research Society 820

[8] Gabhane J, William SP, Bidyadhar R, Bhilawe P, Anand D, Vaidya AN, Wate SR. Additives aided composting of green waste: effects on organic matter degradation, compost maturity, and quality of the finished compost. Bioresour Technol, 2012, 114: 382-388

[9] Gilan I, Hadar Y, Sivan A. Colonization, biofilm formation and biodegradation of polyethylene by a strain of Rhodococcus ruber. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol, 2004, 65: 97-104

[10] Goel R, Zaidi MGH, Soni R, Lata K, Shouche YS. Implication of Arthrobacter and Enterobacter species for polycarbonate degradation. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2008, 61(2): 167-172

[11] Harshvardhan K, Jha B. Biodegradation of low-density polyethylene by marine bacteria from pelagic waters, Arabian Sea, India. Mar Pollut Bull, 2013, 77(1): 100-106

[12] Hoang KC, Tseng M, Shu WJ. Degradation of polyethylene succinate (PES) by a new thermophilic Microbispora strain. Biodegradation, 2007, 18: 333-342

[13] Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Goel R. Nanobarium titanate as supplement to accelerate plastic waste biodegradation by indigenous bacterial consortia. AIP Conf Proc, 2009, 1147: 469-474

[14] Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Satlewal A, Goel R. SPION-accelerated biodegradation of low-density polyethylene by indigenous microbial consortium. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2010, 64: 238-244

[15] Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Goel R. Implications of SPION and NBT nanoparticles upon in vitro and in situ biodegradation of LDPE film. J Microbiol Biotechnol, 2010, 20(6): 1032-1041

[16] Lone MA, Sahay S, Ravinder Deepak. Testing carboxymethyl cellulase activity secreted by Trichophyton terrestre in carboxymethyl cellulose solution. Am J Microbiol, 2014, 5(1): 18-26

[17] Madigan MT, Martinko JM, Parker J. Brock, biology of microorganisms, 2003 10 Hoboken Pearson Education, Inc 145-147

[18] Mahalakshmi V, Siddiq A, Andrew SN. Analysis of polyethylene degrading potentials of microorganisms isolated from compost soil. Int J Pharm Biol Arch, 2012, 3(5): 1190-1196

[19] Manzur A, Limon-Gonzalez M, Favela-Torres E. Biodegradation of physico-chemically treated LDPE by a consortium of filamentous fungi. J Appl Polym Sci, 2004, 92: 265-271

[20] Mehmood CT, Qazi IA, Baig MA, Arshad M, Quddo A. Enhanced photodegradation of titania loaded polyethylene films in a humid environment. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2016, 113: 287-296

[21] Mehmood CT, Qazi IA, Hashmi I, Bhargava Deepa S. Biodegradation of low density polyethylene (LDPE) modified with dye sensitized titania and starch blend using Stenotrophomonas pavanii. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2016, 113: 276-286

[22] Methods Manual Soil Testing in India (2011) Department of Agriculture & Cooperation Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India

[23] Nanda S, Sahu SS. Biodegradability of polyethylene by Brevibacillus, Pseudomonas and Rhodococcus spp. N Y Sci J, 2010, 3(7): 95-98

[24] Neal AL. What can be inferred from bacterium–nanoparticle interactions about the potential consequences of environmental exposure to nanoparticles?. Ecotoxicology, 2008, 17: 362-371

[25] Negi H, Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Satlewal A, Goel R. Comparative in vitro biodegradation studies of epoxy and its silicone blend by selected microbial consortia. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2009, 63: 553-558

[26] Niksefat N, Jahanshahi M, Rahimpour A. The effect of SiO₂ nanoparticles on morphology and performance of thin film composite membranes for forward osmosis application. Desalination, 2014, 343: 140-146

[27] Nwachukwu S, Obidi O, Odocha C. Occurrence and recalcitrance of polyethylene bag waste in Nigerian soils. Afr J Biotechnol, 2010, 9(37): 6096-6104

[28] Nwagu KE, Ominyi MC, Nwoba GE. Isolation, screening and measurement of amylase and cellulase activities of some microorganisms. Cont J Biol Sci, 2012, 5(1): 37-41

[29] Oloffs A, Crosse-Siestrup C, Bisson S, Rinck M, Rudolvh R, Gross U. Biocompatibility of silver-coated polyurethane catheters and silver-coated Dacron material. Biomaterials, 1994, 15: 753-758

[30] Pal S, Tak YK, Song JM. Does the antibacterial activity of silver nanoparticles depend on the shape of the nanoparticle? A study of the gram-negative bacterium Escherichia coli. Appl Environ Microbiol, 2007, 73(6): 1712-1720

[31] Pandimadevi M, Begum IF. Screening, characterization and optimization of cellulase producing bacteria isolated from paper sludge. Int J Sci Res, 2013, 2(9): 176-180

[32] Patagundi BI, Shivasharan CT, Kaliwal BB. Isolation and characterization of cellulase producing bacteria from soil. Int J Curr Microbiol Appl Sci, 2014, 3(5): 59-69

[33] Pimentel D. Environmental and economic costs of soil erosion and conservation benefits. Science, 1995, 24: 1117-1122

[34] Premraj R, Doble M. Biodegradation of polymers. Indian J Biotechnol, 2005, 4: 186-193

[35] Raut MP, William SP, Bhattacharyya JK, Chakrabarti T, Devotta S. Microbial dynamics and enzyme activities during rapid composting of municipal solid waste–a compost maturity analysis perspective. Bioresour Technol, 2008, 99(14): 6512-6519

[36] Reijnders L. The release of TiO₂ and SiO₂ nanoparticles from nanocomposites. Polym Degrad Stab, 2009, 94: 873-876

[37] Sah A, Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Negi H, Goel R. Implications of fullerene-60 upon in vitro LDPE biodegradation. J Microbiol Biotechnol, 2010, 20(5): 908-916

[38] Sangale MK, Shahnawaz M, Ade AB. A review on biodegradation of polythene: the microbial approach. J Biorem Biodeg, 2012, 3(10): 1-9

[39] Santo M, Weitsman R, Sivan A. The role of the copper-binding enzyme–laccase–in the biodegradation of polyethylene by the actinomycete Rhodococcus ruber. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 2013, 84: 204-210

[40] Satlewal A, Soni R, Zaidi M, Shouche Y, Goel R. Comparative biodegradation of HDPE and ldpe using an indigenously developed microbial consortium. J Microbiol Biotechnol, 2008, 18(3): 477-482

[41] Sen SK, Raut S. Microbial degradation of low density polyethylene (LDPE): a review. J Environ Chem Eng, 2015, 3(1): 462-473

[42] Shah AA, Hasan F, Akhter JI, Hameed A, Ahmed S. Degradation of polyurethane by novel bacterial consortium isolated from soil. Ann Microbiol, 2008, 58(3): 381-386

[43] Shah AA, Hasan F, Hameed A, Ahmed S. Biological degradation of plastics: a comprehensive review. Biotechnol Adv, 2008, 26(3): 246-265

[44] Shimao M. Biodegradation of plastics. Curr Opin Biotechnol, 2001, 12: 242-247

[45] Singh B, Sharma N. Mechanistic implications of plastic degradation. Polym Degrad Stab, 2008, 93(3): 561-584

[46] Sivan A. New perspectives in plastic biodegradation. Curr Opin Biotechnol, 2011, 22: 422-426

[47] Soni R, Kapri A, Zaidi MGH, Goel R. Comparative biodegradation studies of non-poronized and poronized LDPE using indigenous microbial consortium. J Polym Environ, 2009, 17(4): 233-239

[48] Sridevi V, Lakshmi MC, Swamy AVN, Rao MN. Implementation of response surface methodology for phenol degradation using Pseudomonas putida (NCIM 2102). J Bioremed Biodegrad, 2011, 2(2): 1-7

[49] Swift G (1997) Non-medical biodegradable polymers: environmentally degradable polymers. In: Handbook of biodegradable polymers. Hardwood Academic, Amsterdam, pp 473–511

[50] Thati V, Roy AS, Ambika Prasad MVN, Shivannavar CT, Gaddad SM. Nanostructured zinc oxide enhances the activity of antibiotics against Staphylococcus aureus. J Biosci Tech, 2010, 1(2): 64-69

[51] Tokiwa Y, Calabia BP, Ugwu CU, Aiba S. Biodegradability of plastics. Int J Mol Sci, 2009, 10(9): 3722-3742

[52] Usha R, Sangeetha T, Palaniswamy M. Screening of polyethylene degrading microorganisms from garbage soil. Libyan Agric Res Cent J Int, 2011, 2(4): 200-204

[53] Vinothini C, Sudhakar S, Ravikumar R. Biodegradation of petroleum and crude oil by Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus cereus. Int J Curr Microbiol Appl Sci, 2015, 4(1): 318-329

[54] Westlake DWS (1983) Microbial activities and changes in the chemical and physical properties of oil. In: Donaldson EC, Clark JB (ed) Proceedings of the 1982 international conference on microbial enhancement of oil recovery. U.S. Department of Energy CONF-8205140: 102–111

[55] Williams DN, Ehrman SH, Holoman TRP. Evaluation of the microbial growth response to inorganic nanoparticles. J Nanobiotechnol, 2006, 4(3): 1-8

[56] Ziad AG, Saadoun I, Shakah AA. Selection of bacteria and plant seeds for potential use in the remediation of diesel contaminated soils. J Basic Microbiol, 2005, 45(4): 251-256

Funding

University Grants Committee New Delhi, India(Grant No.F. 25-1/2013-14(BSR)/11-13/2008 (BSR))