TY - BOOK
T1 - Resistance and Resilience of Soil Microbial Communities Exposed to Petroleum-Derived Compounds
AU - Modrzynski, Jakub Jan
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - Functioning of soil microbial communities is generally considered resilient to disturbance, including chemical stress. Activities of soil microbial communities are often sustained in polluted environments due to exceptional plasticity of microbial communities and functional redundancy. Pollution-induced community tolerance (PICT) often develops following chemical stress. Nonetheless, environmental pollution may severely disturb functioning of soil microbial communities, thereby threatening provision of important ecosystem services provided by microorganisms. Pollution with petroleum and petroleum-derived compounds (PDCs) is a significant environmental problem on a global scale. Research addressing interactions between microorganisms and PDC pollution is dominated by studies of biodegradation, with less emphasis on microbial ecotoxicology. Soil microbial communities are generally considered highly resilient to PDC exposure in part due to their ability to degrade PDCs. However, PDCs can be toxic to most life forms, including bacteria and fungi. This thesis aimed for assessment of stability (i.e. resistance and resilience) of soil microbial communities challenged by chemical exposure. Specifically, ecotoxicological impacts of PDCs on microbial communities function, composition and tolerance were addressed. Based on the results obtained in this PhD project and analysis of the current state-of-the-art from literature it can be concluded that exposure to PDCs often has significant impact on soil microbial communities. In several scenarios effects of the PDC exposure can be detrimental and sometimes longterm, indicating limited resistance and resilience of microbial communities even though these compounds are biodegradable, volatile and tend to sorb to soil. Considering the widespread environmental PDC contamination this highlights a significant risk to ecosystem services provided by soil microbial communities.
AB - Functioning of soil microbial communities is generally considered resilient to disturbance, including chemical stress. Activities of soil microbial communities are often sustained in polluted environments due to exceptional plasticity of microbial communities and functional redundancy. Pollution-induced community tolerance (PICT) often develops following chemical stress. Nonetheless, environmental pollution may severely disturb functioning of soil microbial communities, thereby threatening provision of important ecosystem services provided by microorganisms. Pollution with petroleum and petroleum-derived compounds (PDCs) is a significant environmental problem on a global scale. Research addressing interactions between microorganisms and PDC pollution is dominated by studies of biodegradation, with less emphasis on microbial ecotoxicology. Soil microbial communities are generally considered highly resilient to PDC exposure in part due to their ability to degrade PDCs. However, PDCs can be toxic to most life forms, including bacteria and fungi. This thesis aimed for assessment of stability (i.e. resistance and resilience) of soil microbial communities challenged by chemical exposure. Specifically, ecotoxicological impacts of PDCs on microbial communities function, composition and tolerance were addressed. Based on the results obtained in this PhD project and analysis of the current state-of-the-art from literature it can be concluded that exposure to PDCs often has significant impact on soil microbial communities. In several scenarios effects of the PDC exposure can be detrimental and sometimes longterm, indicating limited resistance and resilience of microbial communities even though these compounds are biodegradable, volatile and tend to sorb to soil. Considering the widespread environmental PDC contamination this highlights a significant risk to ecosystem services provided by soil microbial communities.
UR - http://rex.kb.dk/KGL:KGL:KGL01009242197
M3 - Ph.D. thesis
BT - Resistance and Resilience of Soil Microbial Communities Exposed to Petroleum-Derived Compounds
PB - Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen
ER -