Tolerance To Environmental Contaminants

Tolerance, the ability of populations to cope with the chemical stress resulting from toxic contaminants, has been described in many organisms from bacteria to fungi, from phytoplankton to terrestrial flowering plants, and from invertebrates such as worms to vertebrates like fish and amphibians. The building of tolerance, be it by physiological acclimation or genetic adaptation, can have great consequences for the local biodiversity, and hence the ecology and ecosystem functioning of many of the world’s habitats. Understanding the frequency of the occurrence of tolerance has tremendous implications for the sustainability of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Tolerance to Environmental Contaminants takes a multidisciplinary approach across contaminant types, habitats, organisms, biological levels of organization and scientific disciplines. The book examines the general principles governing the acquisition and biological consequences of tolerance, genetically or physiologically based, at different levels of biological organization, taxonomically from bacteria and archaea to flowering plants and vertebrates, and within organisms from molecular biology and biochemistry through physiology to whole organism, community, and ecosystem levels of organization. Presenting a state-of-the-art synthesis of the many aspects of the phenomenon of tolerance to environmental contaminants, this volume covers mechanisms of defense involved in the acquisition of tolerance, different classes of environmental contaminants, positive and negative ecological consequences of tolerance and the impact of tolerance in bacteria, plants, and insects on society. The reviews presented in this book supply the tools for carrying out more informed and therefore more reliable risk-benefit analyses when assessing the ecotoxicological risks to life in any of the contaminated habitats that now surround us in our industrialized society.

"More than two-thirds of the earth is covered with aquatic habitats that play a key role in stabilizing the global environment and providing a wide variety of services to increasing human needs. Nevertheless, anthropogenic activities are rapidly destroying the quality of both fresh and marine waters over the globe due to excessive use of chemicals and fertilizers, and pollution from suburban and industrial areas eventually make their way into the aquatic world. To preserve the integrity of aquatic environs is the greatest challenge in the current era because more than 80 per cent of urban wastewater, millions of tons of heavy metals chemical, toxic sludge and other waste are being directly discharged into inland waters. There are many reports that bacteria and plant species are using biodegradation and bioremediation strategies. The potential drivers of the commercial use of biological resources are yet to be explored as there are issues involved with technological facilitation and it's need for large investment funds, so there is a need to explore better training and development of more eco-friendly biological resources. After global investigation, the use of biological remediation technologies to deal with environmental problems should become standard practice, even though respondents are striving to apply bioremediation techniques. As microorganisms have evolved different survival strategies in heavier metal-polluted conditions such as biosorption, bioaccumulation or biomineralisation, which are either ex situ or in situ exploitation, these organisms are known to evolve and introduce specific detoxification mechanisms. The use of microbes as a time-saver for bioremediation was a result of the complexities involved in conventional soil regeneration methods. There are so many fungal species (like genera Penicillium, Aspergillus and Rhizopus) which has been identified as potential microbial agents for the removal of heavy metals from aqueous solutions but due to toxicity of chemical or heavy metals, it is difficult to maintain a healthy population of microorganisms hence high throughput genetic engineering tools and techniques need to be employed to attain resistant strains to degrade xenobiotic compounds. A novel technology for obtaining highly efficient biosorbents from endophytes, a hyperaccumulator, which is more convenient than the traditional method of obtaining biosorbents. Genomics, for instance in GMO plants, have been studied and used primarily in microbial genetics, but it is now a new instrument for bioremediation. Knowledge of genomics in the sense of understanding microbiological remediation provides a view of genes linked to microbial exposure to soil toxic metals. The use of genomics in bioremediation enables microorganisms to be analyzed on the basis both of biochemical and mechanism-related molecular levels."--

Abstract: The Office of Technology Assessment presents an evaluation of federal and state efforts to control environmental contamination of food by organic chemicals, metals and radioactive substances. Economic impacts are enormous, not only in food loss but health costs. The only sure method of preventing contamination is to prevent release of toxic substances into the environment. The Food and Drug Administration is responsible on the interstate level for identifying and regulating environmental contaminants, which is done by setting tolerance or action levels. However, no policy exists which defines the balance of health hazards, and problems are aggravated by the complexity of the food industry, and lack of coordination by various agencies. Options for the future are to continue in the present mode; amend the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to deal specifically with the issues; establish an investigating and monitoring system; and improve federal response to problems.

Phytotechnologies: Remediation of Environmental Contaminants highlights the use of natural and inherent traits of plants and associated microbes to exclude, accumulate, or metabolize a variety of contaminants, with the goal of efficiently and sustainably decontaminating the biosphere from unwanted hazardous compounds. Contributed by an international team of authors, the book ensures a balance between theory and practice without compromising the basic conceptual framework of Phytotechnologies. Divided into three major sections, the book: Introduces contaminants and contaminated sites, and also highlights the significance of genus Brassica and vetiver grass species for varied environmental contaminants’ remediation Presents an exhaustive exploration of potential strategies for enhancing plants and associated microbes-mediated environmental contaminants’ remediation Overviews major physiological, biochemical, and genetic-molecular mechanisms responsible for plant tolerance and adaptation to varied environmental contaminants A one-stop source of cutting edge answers and time-saving access, Phytotechnologies: Remediation of Environmental Contaminants is a common platform for engineers, environmental microbiologists, plant physiologists, and molecular biologists with the common aim of sustainable solutions to vital environmental issues. In short, the book provides a conceptual overview of ecosystems approaches and phytotechnologies, and their cumulative significance in relation to various environmental problems and potential solutions.

Phytotechnologies: Remediation of Environmental Contaminants highlights the use of natural and inherent traits of plants and associated microbes to exclude, accumulate, or metabolize a variety of contaminants, with the goal of efficiently and sustainably decontaminating the biosphere from unwanted hazardous compounds. Contributed by an internationa

This book details the plant-assisted remediation method, “phytoremediation”, which involves the interaction of plant roots and associated rhizospheric microorganisms for the remediation of soil contaminated with high levels of metals, pesticides, solvents, radionuclides, explosives, crude oil, organic compounds and various other contaminants. Each chapter highlights and compares the beneficial and economical alternatives of phytoremediation to currently practiced soil removal and burial practices.