Bioremediation of 27 Micropollutants by Symbiotic Microorganisms of Wetland Macrophytes

Hana Brunhoferova, Silvia Venditti, Cédric C. Laczny, Laura Lebrun and Joachim Hansen
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Hana Brunhoferova: Department of Engineering, Campus Kirchberg, University of Luxembourg, 6, Rue Coudenhove-Kalergi, L-1359 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Silvia Venditti: Department of Engineering, Campus Kirchberg, University of Luxembourg, 6, Rue Coudenhove-Kalergi, L-1359 Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Cédric C. Laczny: Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, Campus Belval, University of Luxembourg, 7, Avenue des Hauts Fourneaux, L-4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Laura Lebrun: Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, Campus Belval, University of Luxembourg, 7, Avenue des Hauts Fourneaux, L-4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Joachim Hansen: Department of Engineering, Campus Kirchberg, University of Luxembourg, 6, Rue Coudenhove-Kalergi, L-1359 Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 7, 1-16

Abstract: Background: Micropollutants in bodies of water represent many challenges. We addressed these challenges by the application of constructed wetlands, which represent advanced treatment technology for the removal of micropollutants from water. However, which mechanisms specifically contribute to the removal efficiency often remains unclear. Methods: Here, we focus on the removal of 27 micropollutants by bioremediation. For this, macrophytes Phragmites australis , Iris pseudacorus and Lythrum salicaria were taken from established wetlands, and a special experimental set-up was designed. In order to better understand the impact of the rhizosphere microbiome, we determined the microbial composition using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and investigated the role of identified genera in the micropollutant removal of micropollutants. Moreover, we studied the colonization of macrophyte roots by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which are known for their symbiotic relationship with plants. This symbiosis could result in increased removal of present micropollutants. Results: We found Iris pseudacorus to be the most successful bioremediative system, as it removed 22 compounds, including persistent ones, with more than 80% efficiency. The most abundant genera that contributed to the removal of micropollutants were Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium, Variovorax, Methylotenera, Reyranella, Amaricoccus and Hydrogenophaga . Iris pseudacorus exhibited the highest colonization rate (56%). Conclusions: Our experiments demonstrate the positive impact of rhizosphere microorganisms on the removal of micropollutants.

Keywords: arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi; bioremediation; constructed wetlands; removal of micropollutants; rhizosphere microbiome (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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