Abstract:
Hydrocarbons are a major pollutant of soil. Biodegradation of petroleum products
through the soil microorganisms has emerged as a method of interest for economic and
ecological point of view. The aim of our study was to isolate and identify fungi species
present in soil polluted by hydrocarbons: crude oil, diesel and used oil motor. The soil sample
was polluted with these hydrocarbon derivatives for 6 months. Isolation of fungi isolates were
carried out using the dilution method, whereas the identification of fungi was based on their
morphology depending on macroscopic and microscopic appearance.
A number of fungi isolates were isolated from three types of polluted soils on PDA
medium. The results showed the presence of two different fungi genera namely: Aspergillus
and Penicillium, with the dominance of isolates belonging to the genus Aspergillus. Four
isolates were selected for the test of their ability to degrade crude oil. These were grown on
three different salt medium: without any carbon source, with sucrose as a carbon source and
salt medium supplemented with 1% crude oil as a carbon source. Unfortunately the chosen
isolates were unable to degrade crude oil.
