Meet FASHOLA MUIBAT OMOTOLA, an Academic Staff of Lagos State University.
Lecturer I
Microbiology
At the Microbiology department office
Appointment on Visitation important
Topic: Bioremoval Of Pollutant From Contaminated Environment
Description:
I am an Environmental Microbiologist and focus
on bioremoval of pollutants from the environment. My research area includes
bioremediation, microbial biotechnology and biodiversity of soil, plant and
water. My research involves assessment of microbes for their remediation
potentials that can be harnessed in restoration of environments perturbed with
organic and inorganic pollutants. Environmental pollution
is a global menace influencing every nook and corner of the earth. All types of
life forms are in one way or the other affected by the impact of pollution and
there is need to find suitable remediation approaches to this menace.
Bioremediation has been recognized to be the best way to neutralize polluted
environments. My research seeks to discern the various ways bacteria and fungi
interact with pollutants in the environment, using culture dependent and
independent approaches to assess the bioremediation potentials of the
microorganisms. I am particularly fascinated by metagenomic approach because it
gives more insight into the microbial diversities present in various polluted
sites including the underrepresented populations, functional genes as well as
the metabolic biosynthetic pathways of the microbes that can be explored in
bioremoval of pollutants in the environment. My current research attempts to
use metagenomic tools to study the effects of heavy metals on microbial
community structure and the various biosynthetic pathways used by microbes to
withstand the stress imposed on them by heavy metals in the environment.
My studies so far have been able to confirm the suitability
of microbes in reducing bioavailability of persistent environmental pollutant
in the environment.
| # | Certificate | School | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Ph.D (Microbiology) | North West University, Mafikeng, South Africa | 2017 |
Isolation and characterization of biosurfactant produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Bacillus spp isolated from crude oil polluted soil
Introduction: The importance of petroleum products in the world economy has resulted in continuous distribution of large amounts of crude oil all over the world which has led to pollution of the environment with crude oil.
Aim/Objectives: This study aims to isolate and characterize biosurfactant producing bacteria from crude oil contaminated soil in an automobile workshop and determine heavy metal tolerance of the isolates.
Methodology: Bacteria were isolated from the contaminated soil by continuous enrichment technique and their tolerance to five heavy metals (nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), cobalt (Co), cadmium (Cd), and chromium (Cr) heavy metals were determined using heavy metal supplemented agar medium. Biosurfactant production was tested using four screening methods: hemolytic activity, emulsification index (E24), blue agar plate method and oil spread method, while the biosurfactants produced were characterized using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Selected isolates were putatively identified using phenotypic and biochemical tests.
Expected results: The four morphologically distinct isolates selected gave different results for the screening methods used for biosurfactant production and their identity showed that three of the isolates are Bacillus coagulans, Bacillus megaterium and Bacillus subtillis while the fourth isolates was Pseudomonas aeruginosa. B. megaterium had an emulsification index of 53.8%, B. coagulans 46.6%, B. subtilis 53.5% and P. aeruginosa 57.14%. All the isolates tolerated 2 mM concentration of Ni, Pb, Co, Cd, and Cr used while only B.megaterium could tolerated 6 mM concentration of Cr. Based on their high emulsification index, B.megaterium and P.aeruginosa, were further characterized for the type of carbohydrate, lipid and protein. Both isolates produced several types of carbohydrate, protein and lipid. The biosurfactant produced by B.megaterium was classified as glycolipid while that of P.aeruginosa was rhamnolipid.
Contribution to knowledge: The four identified bacterial isolates are good candidate for bioremediation of polluted sites and a potential resource for surface-active molecules of industrial importance.
FASHOLA MUIBAT is a Lecturer I at the Department of Microbiology
FASHOLA has a Ph.D in Microbiology from North West University, Mafikeng, South Africa
