Monitoring of biocement- and biogrout- producing bacteria in desert habitats of Iran

Subject Areas : Bacteriology

Mehdi Kargar ¹ (M.Sc., Young Researchers and Elite Club, Shiraz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shiraz, Iran.)
Mohammad Kargar ² (Professor, Department of Microbiology, Jahrom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Jahrom, Iran)

Received: 2017-07-07 Accepted : 2017-09-07 Published : 2018-05-22

Keywords: 16S rRNA gene, Urease, Biocement, Sporosarcina pasteurii,

Abstract :

Background & Objectives: Microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) is one of the proposed methods for soil stabilization and strengthening. The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize biocement-producing ureolytic bacteria from arid soils. Materials & Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 280 soil samples were collected from different areas of Iran. Samples were cultured using urea broth medium. Urease-positive bacteria were assessed for the level of urease activity. Identification of active strains was performed based on conventional biochemical tests and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Optimum temperature and pH conditions for biocement production were evaluated in urease-positive bacteria and was compared with sporosaicina pasteurii (ATCC 11589) strain. Finally, calcium carbonate crystals were assessed byX-ray diffraction (XRD) crystallography test at the temperature of 25 °C and pH of 8.5 as optimal conditions. Results: 304 strains were isolated from 5 different bacterial genera. Bacillus and Sporosarcina were the major ureolytic isolates of arid regions. The most amount of calcium carbonate was produced at the temperature of 25 °C and a pH of 8.5. Ten most effective isolates in the production of urease enzymes and biocement were identified by molecular analysis and subsequently registered in NCBI Genbank. In addition, biocement production by selected isolates was confirmed by XRD test. Conclusion: Our results showed that the amount of urea and calcium chloride plays an important role in calcium carbonate crystals production. S. pasteurii was one of the most important biocement-producing bacteria. Therefore, optimization of growth conditions in higher scale is recommended for further applications in stabilizing the sand, ground strength and bridging. 

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