Wastewater reuse for irrigation is an interesting alternative for many Mediterranean countries suffering from water shortages. The development of new technologies for water recycling is a priority for these countries. In this study we test the efficiency of UV-LEDs (Ultraviolet-Light-Emitting Diodes) emitting UV-A or UV-C radiations, used alone or coupled, on bacterial and chemical indicators. We monitored the survival of fecal bioindicators found in urban wastewaters and the oxidation of creatinine and phenol which represent either conventional organic matter or the aromatic part of pollution respectively. It appears that coupling UV-A/UV-C i) achieves microbial reduction in wastewater more efficiently than when a UV-LED is used alone, and ii) oxidizes up to 37% of creatinine and phenol, a result comparable to that commonly obtained with photoreactants such as TiO(2).

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In this study, we describe the biochemical features and the ability of a new laccase isoform from a Marasmius quercophilus strain collected on evergreen oak litter to transform various aromatic compounds. This laccase, induced with ferulic acid, exhibits interesting enzymatic properties, such as great thermal stability at 30 and 40 • C (24 h), no inhibition with EDTA, Cystein or SDS. These biochemical features are quite different from those observed with the laccase of another M. quercophilus strain collected in a different area of the South of France. Thus, this study shows the degree of variation in the properties of this enzymatic system within the same species. Furthermore we demonstrate that several natural aromatic compounds were transform leading to polymerization. The transformation of chlorophenols such as 2-chlorophenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol is also observed without adding mediators (2,2-azinobis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) or 1-hydroxybenzotriazole) to the reaction mixture. Thus, the mediators used do not seem to extend the substrate range for this laccase under these experimental conditions.

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Marasmius quercophilus is a white-rot fungus involved in carbon recycling in Mediterranean ecosystems because of its laccase production. Here we described the effect of metal ions and halide salts, on laccase activity in order to point out the action of such environmental pollutants on this enzyme of major importance. Furthermore we tested organic solvent effects on laccase reaction since reaction mixture including solvent can be used in the transformation of xenobiotics. In the case of metal ions, we found that chloride ions were responsible for inhibition while CuSO(4) and MnSO(4) enhanced laccase activity. When halides were tested, we showed the following degree of inhibition: F(-)>Cl(-)>Br(-). Furthermore we found that I(-) was oxidized by laccase with I(2) as the product of the reaction. With ABTS, 50% of the laccase activity remains for solvent concentration ranging from 40% to 60% depending on the solvent used while with syringaldazine solvent concentration ranged from 50% to 70%. The organic solvent effects observed were probably a result of enzyme denaturation and of both enhancement of oxidised product solubilisation and of substrate solubilisation (for syringaldazine). These results show that laccase from M. quercophilus is not rapidly inhibited by certain environmental pollutants which sustains its role in carbon turnover under pertubation. However the strong effect of chloride ion on laccase activity should be further investigated with in situ studies since this could drastically influence carbon recycling in litters from Mediterranean littoral locations.

The development of new technologies for water recycling is a priority for arid and semi-arid countries such as those of the Mediterranean basin. The aim of this study was to test the efficiency of UV-A and UV-C light emitting diodes (UV-LEDs) on bacteria inactivation. We used Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis, bioindicators of fecal pollution typically found in urban wastewaters. An experimental design was performed to discriminate weight of factors influencing bacteria inactivation yields and reactivation phenomena. Four parameters were tested on simple bacterial cultures: pH, bacterial density, exposure time and wavelength. It appears that the exposure time and wavelength used have a significant effect on the response. The 280/ 365 nm or 280/405 nm coupled wavelengths, have the most important bactericidal effect, and we also note the absence of bacterial reactivation after 60 s of exposure to UV.