Abstract
In the present work, the biodegradation of phenol by alginate immobilized Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells was investigated. Immobilized Chlamydomonas reinhardtii could remove up to 1300 μmol/L of phenol within 10 days of cultivation. Metabolic activity was demonstrated by the extracellular release of catechol. Beads prepared at high concentrations of alginate (5–6% w/v) were found to protect microalgae against the strong inhibitory effects of phenol on the photosynthetic apparatus. Cells immobilized in beads of higher concentrations of alginate exhibited higher metabolic efficiencies compared to those prepared by lower alginate concentrations. Lower alginate concentrations (3–4% w/v) led to increased cell leakage, while the presence of phenol in the medium had the opposite effect in all alginate concentrations. Resuspension of immobilized microalgae in a medium containing a growth-promoting substrate, led to colony formation only on the external surface of alginate beads, indicating that acetic acid and consequently phenol, could not penetrate the internal of alginate beads. The significance of the work is that alginate immobilized Chlamydomonas substantially minimize the required volume of the aqueous medium and improve the economics and commercial application prospects of the process.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Mr. Stefanos Papadakis from the Electron Microscopy Laboratory “Vasileios Galanopoulos” at the University of Crete for his assistance in the preparation and observation of alginate beads samples by Scanning Electron Microscopy.
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This research was co-financed by Greece and the European Union (European Social Fund—ESF) through the Operational Programme “Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning” in the context of the project “Scholarships programme for post-graduate studies -2nd Study Cycle” (MIS-5003404), implemented by the State Scholarships Foundation (IKY).
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TN: Conceptualization, methodology, investigation, validation, visualization, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing; DG: conceptualization, validation, writing—review and editing, supervision, project administration.
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Nazos, T.T., Ghanotakis, D.F. Biodegradation of phenol by alginate immobilized Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells. Arch Microbiol 203, 5805–5816 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-021-02570-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-021-02570-6