Occurrence and bioremediation of anthracene in the environment

Abstract

Occurrence of PAH in the environment has been a concern of many environmentalist for its obstinac, toxicity and harm that it may impose. Anthracene is a common low molecular weight PAH that is often used as a model PAH in bioremediation study due to its structure that is also found in high molecular weight PAH. This article provides an overview of the occurrence of PAH and specifically, anthracene. Due to the harm that they impose, several methods have been applied to overcome the problem, including opting for bioremediation. This article will explore on the bioremediation process involving microorganisms and the respective enzymes secreted during the process. Proposed mechanism on degradation of anthracene by bacteria and fungus are also included. The paper will further leads to gaps of study and to the direction for future study and applications.

Keywords: anthracene; bacteria; fungus; microorganisms; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH).