Long-term analysis of diesel fuel consumption in a co-culture of Acinetobacter venetianus, Pseudomonas putida and Alcaligenes faecalis.

The dynamics of a microbial population isolated from superficial waters of Venice Lagoon and the ability to utilise diesel fuel (n-alkanes mixture C12-C28) as the sole carbon and energy source were studied in a long-term reconstruction experiment. The reconstructed microbial population consisted of three bacterial strains belonging to the species Acinetobacter venetianus, Pseudomonas putida, and Alcaligenes faecalis, which were able to oxidise n-alkanes to alkanoates, n-alkanols to alkanoates, or only n-alkanoates, respectively. Three different approaches: plate counting, cell counting by epifluorescence microscopy with DAPI staining, and by fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) by using a probe conjugate with fluoresceine isothiocyanate specifically targeted towards the 16S rRNA of bacteria belonging to the genus Acinetobacter were used to monitor the growth of the bacterial population.

Gel sequestration of heavy metals by Klebsiella oxytoca isolated from iron mat.

The enterobacterium Klebsiella oxytoca strain BAS-10 was isolated from sediments under an iron mat formed in a stream receiving leached waters from pyrite mine tailings. Under anaerobic laboratory conditions, BAS-10 fermented Fe(III)-citrate and Na-citrate giving CH(3)COOH and CO(2). In the presence of ferric citrate, BAS-10 secreted quantities of a thick gel containing glucose and/or mannose, if not other sugars.

Heavy metal coprecipitation with hydrozincite [Zn(5)(CO(3))(2)(OH)(6)] from mine waters caused by photosynthetic microorganisms.

An iron-poor stream of nearly neutral pH polluted by mine tailings has been investigated for a natural phenomenon responsible for the polishing of heavy metals in mine wastewaters. A white mineralized mat, which was determined to be hydrozincite [Zn(5)(CO(3))(2)(OH)(6)] by X-ray diffraction analysis, was observed in the stream sediments mainly in spring. The precipitate shows a total organic matter residue of 10% dry weight and contains high concentrations of Pb, Cd, Ni, Cu, and other metals.

Adhesion of acinetobacter venetianus to diesel fuel droplets studied with In situ electrochemical and molecular probes.

The adhesion of a recently described species, Acinetobacter venetianus VE-C3 (F. Di Cello, M. Pepi, F.