Effects of environmental factors on anaerobic microbial dehalogenation: a review

Abstract:

Wide applications and improper treatments of organohalides in industry and agriculture lead to their ubiquitous presence in the underground environments, posing a great threat to ecosystem functions, drinking water safety and human health. Organohalide-respiring bacteria (OHRB) are crucial forin situ bioremediation of organohalide-contaminated environments. This review summarizes environmental factors (e.g., pH, temperature, salinity, electron donors and acceptors, oxygen) that may impact the growth, metabolisms and dechlorination activities of OHRB, and discusses the future research of OHRB, which is intended to provide theoretical and technical reference for the effective implementation of in situ bioremediation to clean up organohalides-contaminated sites.