Protocol for the Application of Bioluminescence Full-Cell Bioreporters for Monitoring of Terrestrial Bioremediation

Microbial full-scale bioreporters are associated with a variety of names that include biosensors, bio-indicators and bio-reactive agents. The role of such microbial agents is to respond to the bioavailable fraction of a given analyte under“near environmental conditions”. Making use of appropriate assays with relevant and biologically compatible extraction procedures means that such techniques can be applied to develop site specific risk and hazard assessments, an appraisal of constraints inhibiting biodegradation and a prediction of potential for biodegradation. The effectiveness of an assay requires: (1) the comprehensive characterisation of the marker gene (the reporter gene) and the isolate, (2) the collection of an environmentally relevant sample in a suitable matrix and (3) a technique to integrate the bioreporters with the sample to generate focussed and relevant data. This technology is ideally placed for high throughput, rapid screening of samples from a range of environmental matrices.
Source: Springer protocols feed by Microbiology - Category: Microbiology Source Type: news