STUDY OF POTENTIAL ACTIVITY OF SOIL ISOLATED STRAIN OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS IN DEGRADING ORGANOPHOSPHATE PESTICIDE ENDOSULFAN

Abstract

Endosulfan, which regulates a wide variety of pesticides, is a representative pesticide with Sulphur and chlorine as a functional group. Residues of Endosulfan α and β vary and persist with their oxidation products in air, water and soil. The remediation of novel insecticides is gaining interest, for the characterization of enzymes detoxifying a number organophosphate compound. Enzyme degradation study is essential to provide catalytic mechanism with the assumption that they are able to detoxicate the insecticides. The present work explains the enrichment of an endosulfan degradation by soil bacteria and can be used as bioremediating agent. The promising degradation of endosulfan have been found when exposed to the soil bacteria. The maximum endosulfan degradation (upto 90%) was observed when incubated with the bacteria. The obtained bacterial isolate found to capable of degrading more of α-endosulfan than β-endosulfan after incubation of 10 days. The maximum growth as observed by the optical density indicated the utilization of endosulfan as a carbon and energy source. Organisms that are isolated from soils polluted by endosulfan by the enrichment process may also be used in soil and water as bio-remediators. The conclusive discovery of a biological cause of Endosulfan degrading activity is an important step in the enzymatic investigation process for endosulfan degradation.