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A systematic evaluation of alkaliphilic microbial consortia from a soda lake for the biodegradation of cyanide-rich wastewater

Belay, Getnet ; Suarez, Carolina LU ; Simachew, Addis and Paul, Catherine J. LU orcid (2025) In International Biodeterioration and Biodegradation 196.
Abstract

Alkaliphilic microorganisms are one option for the treatment of cyanide-polluted wastewater. This study reports the degradation of cyanide from simulated gold mine wastewater using alkaliphilic microbial consortia harvested from a soda lake, Lake Chitu, Ethiopia. A novel aerobic-anoxic integrated treatment setup was established for the treatment process. Colorimetry was used to measure residual cyanide concentration, and 16S rRNA amplicon gene sequencing was used to study microbial diversity. This treatment system was able to degrade 97.49 ± 0.12% of 200 mg/L sodium cyanide. However, changes were observed (p < 0.05) when the established consortia were stressed with heavy metals. About 28 % of the initial inoculum persisted until the... (More)

Alkaliphilic microorganisms are one option for the treatment of cyanide-polluted wastewater. This study reports the degradation of cyanide from simulated gold mine wastewater using alkaliphilic microbial consortia harvested from a soda lake, Lake Chitu, Ethiopia. A novel aerobic-anoxic integrated treatment setup was established for the treatment process. Colorimetry was used to measure residual cyanide concentration, and 16S rRNA amplicon gene sequencing was used to study microbial diversity. This treatment system was able to degrade 97.49 ± 0.12% of 200 mg/L sodium cyanide. However, changes were observed (p < 0.05) when the established consortia were stressed with heavy metals. About 28 % of the initial inoculum persisted until the end of the treatment days. Twenty-eight bacterial phyla were identified, with Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidota being the most abundant. At the end of the treatment process, Alkalibacterium (74.43%), Exaguobacterium (6.6%), and Halomonas (3.89%) were dominant. These findings indicate that alkaliphilic microbial consortiums from Ethiopian Rift Valley soda lakes are effective for the treatment of cyanide-polluted wastewater.

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type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Alkaliphilic, Biodegradation, Consortia, Lake Chitu, Simulated wastewater, Sodium cyanide
in
International Biodeterioration and Biodegradation
volume
196
article number
105937
publisher
Elsevier
external identifiers
  • scopus:85205501547
ISSN
0964-8305
DOI
10.1016/j.ibiod.2024.105937
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
ac027e7a-af35-4ff5-aec5-d45745d233bf
date added to LUP
2024-11-27 10:09:19
date last changed
2025-04-04 14:39:21
@article{ac027e7a-af35-4ff5-aec5-d45745d233bf,
  abstract     = {{<p>Alkaliphilic microorganisms are one option for the treatment of cyanide-polluted wastewater. This study reports the degradation of cyanide from simulated gold mine wastewater using alkaliphilic microbial consortia harvested from a soda lake, Lake Chitu, Ethiopia. A novel aerobic-anoxic integrated treatment setup was established for the treatment process. Colorimetry was used to measure residual cyanide concentration, and 16S rRNA amplicon gene sequencing was used to study microbial diversity. This treatment system was able to degrade 97.49 ± 0.12% of 200 mg/L sodium cyanide. However, changes were observed (p &lt; 0.05) when the established consortia were stressed with heavy metals. About 28 % of the initial inoculum persisted until the end of the treatment days. Twenty-eight bacterial phyla were identified, with Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidota being the most abundant. At the end of the treatment process, Alkalibacterium (74.43%), Exaguobacterium (6.6%), and Halomonas (3.89%) were dominant. These findings indicate that alkaliphilic microbial consortiums from Ethiopian Rift Valley soda lakes are effective for the treatment of cyanide-polluted wastewater.</p>}},
  author       = {{Belay, Getnet and Suarez, Carolina and Simachew, Addis and Paul, Catherine J.}},
  issn         = {{0964-8305}},
  keywords     = {{Alkaliphilic; Biodegradation; Consortia; Lake Chitu; Simulated wastewater; Sodium cyanide}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  series       = {{International Biodeterioration and Biodegradation}},
  title        = {{A systematic evaluation of alkaliphilic microbial consortia from a soda lake for the biodegradation of cyanide-rich wastewater}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ibiod.2024.105937}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.ibiod.2024.105937}},
  volume       = {{196}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}