According to the university's press office, it turns out that many marine bacteria are able to successfully break down oil, and that this process is more effective in cold water.
Oil spills are among the most significant threats to marine ecosystems, as they poison all living organisms, destroy their habitats, and accumulate in the tissues of species used in food production. However, bacteria that feed on petroleum hydrocarbons are always present in the water and help nature combat pollution and restore damaged ecosystems.
Researchers discovered that bacteria from the genera Mycobacterium, Brevibacterium, Nocardia, Corynebacterium, Rhodococcus, and Arthrobacter are most prevalent in highly polluted areas. In the marine environment, bacteria belonging to the genera Alcanivorax, Acinetobacter, Pseudomonas, Marinobacter, Halomonas, Oleispira, Thalassolituus, and Shewanella are also active.
Analysis of scientific studies conducted over the past fifteen years has shown that many strains of marine bacteria break down oil efficiently at 5°C. Some are even more active at lower temperatures than at 22°C. This is particularly important for Arctic seas, where oil spills can be catastrophic.
Olga Rybkovets, acting rector of Kamchatka State University, says: "Comprehensive environmental monitoring of marine and coastal terrestrial ecosystems in Kamchatka includes the study of microbial diversity, including bacteria involved in the natural cleaning of marine pollution. Because understanding how these microorganisms work opens up prospects for developing biotechnological approaches to restoring ecosystems after oil spills."
According to the researchers, further studies will contribute to a better understanding of the metabolic mechanisms of microbes, and to finding new ways to use oil-oxidizing bacteria to clean seas and oceans.
