Background: With increasing demands of fossil fuel energy, extensive exploration of natural sources has caused a number of large scale accidental spills of crude oil and resulted in environmental disasters. The consequence of oil pollution to environment and human health has brought a serious challenge to environmental scientists. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the biodegradation of petrolum compound by Bacillus subtilis isolated from automobile workshops. Methods: Soil samples were collected from petrol bunks and workshops and subjected to serial dilution and plating. From the developed bacterial colonies, one was selected and identified as Bacillus subtilis based on the biochemical tests. The isolated strain was able to grow in minimal broth along with 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10% concentrations of petrol which indicated the capability of the organism in degrading petrol and utilizing it as a source for growth. Results: The isolated strain's efficiency was determined by analysing the parameters pH, optical density and CO 2 released during petrol degradation. HPLC analysis also confirmed the degradation of petrol by Bacillus subtilis. Conclusion: The isolate Bacillus subtilis has the ability to tolerate the petrol concentrations and grow on them. Hence, this strain can be used in cleaning oil polluted sites.

Synthetic pyrethroids are pesticides derived from naturally occurring pyrethrins, taken from pyrethrum of dried Chrysanthemum flowers. They are chemically designed to be more toxic with lower break down times and are formulated with synergists increasing potency and compromising the body's ability to detoxify the pesticide. Though claimed to be selectively toxic to insects, synthetic pyrethroids are extremely to xic to aquatic organisms, including fish in concentrations similar to those used for controlling mosquito, black fly and tsetse fly larvae, which are the actual targets of pyrethroids. Many pyrethroids have been linked to the disruption of the endocrine system, reproduction and sexual development, interference with the immune system and the induction of breast cancer. The widespread use of pyrethroids is a major problem as they pollute the agricultural lands and water resources and affect non-target organisms and humans. Recent studies show that some microbes are able to degrade synthetic pyrethroids by esterase production and this application is proposed as an inexpensive and simple method. In the present work, the aspects related to the toxicity and biodegradation of synthetic pyrethroids are discussed.

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Background: Oil spills are considered as one of the critical problems which cause a decline in environmental health. Currently the biological solutions have become more familiar to remove hazardous substances from the environment. Methods: Soil samples were collected from petrol bunks and automobile workshops at Madurai and used for the isolation of fungi. The isolated fungus was identified as Penicillium sp. using lacto phenol cotton blue staining method and cultural characteristics. The efficiency of the fungal strain on the degradation of different concentrations of petrol was studied using 2.5, 5, 7.5 and 10% of petrol in minimal medium. Results: The parameters, pH, optical density and CO released were determined. HPLC analysis exhibited a difference in the pattern of peaks between control and the 2 treated sample confirming petrol degradation. Conclusion: The ability of Penicillium sp. to tolerate oil pollutants and grow on them, suggest that it can be employed as bioremediation agent and can be used in restoring the ecosystem when contaminated by oil.

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