This study investigated the microbial diversity inhabiting the roots (rhizosphere) of macrophytes thriving along the Blesbokspruit wetland, South Africa's least conserved Ramsar site. The wetland suffers from decades of pollution from mining wastewater, agriculture, and sewage. The current study focused on three macrophytes: Phragmites australis (common reed), Typha capensis (bulrush), and Eichhornia crassipes (water hyacinth). The results revealed a greater abundance and diversity of microbes (Bacteria and Fungi) associated with the free-floating E. crassipes compared to P. australis and T. capensis. Furthermore, the correlation between microbial abundance and metals, showed a strong correlation between fungal communities and metals such as nickel (Ni) and arsenic (As), while bacterial communities correlated more with lead (Pb) and chromium (Cr). The functional analysis predicted by PICRUSt2 identified genes related to xenobiotic degradation, suggesting the potential of these microbes to break down pollutants. Moreover, specific bacterial groups - Proteobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Cyanobacteria, and Bacteroidetes - were linked to this degradation pathway. These findings suggest a promising avenue for microbe-assisted phytoremediation, a technique that utilizes plants and their associated microbes to decontaminate polluted environments.
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Rhizosphere microbial community structure and PICRUSt2 predicted metagenomes function in heavy metal contaminated sites: A case study of the Blesbokspruit wetland.
Sci Total Environ
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Centre for Competence in Environmental Biotechnology, College of Sciences, Environment and Technology, University of South Africa, Florida Science Campus, South Africa.
This study investigated the microbial diversity inhabiting the roots (rhizosphere) of macrophytes thriving along the Blesbokspruit wetland, South Africa's least conserved Ramsar site. The wetland suffers from decades of pollution from mining wastewater, agriculture, and sewage. The current study focused on three macrophytes: Phragmites australis (common reed), Typha capensis (bulrush), and Eichhornia crassipes (water hyacinth).
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Institute for the Development of Energy for African Sustainability (IDEAS), University of South Africa, Christiaan De Wet/Pioneer, P.O. Box X6, FL 1710, South Africa; Centre of Competence in Environmental Biotechnology, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa, Christiaan De Wet/Pioneer, P.O. Box X6, FL 1710, South Africa. Electronic address:
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