Biotechnology Research – serie

Increased industrial and agricultural activity this century has led to vast quantities of the earth's soil and groundwater resources becoming contaminated with hazardous chemicals. Bioremediation provides a technology based on the use of living organisms, usually bacteria and fungi, to remove pollutants from soil and water, preferably in situ. This approach, which is potentially more cost-effective than traditional techniques such as incineration of soils and carbon filtration of water, requires an understanding of how organisms transform chemicals, how they survive in polluted environments and how they should be employed in the field. This book examines these issues for many of the most serious and common environmental contaminants, resulting in a volume which presents the most recent position on the application of bioremediation to the cleanup of polluted soil and water.

Traditionally the province of chemists, the problem of environmental pollution is increasingly being tackled using methodologies which have a biological basis. This 1998 volume provides a range of examples of how biotechnology can offer sensitive and ecologically relevant new ways of monitoring the presence of biohazards in our environment and, once detected, how these biohazards can be removed in an ecologically safe way through bioremediation. Additional chapters on economic, legislative and policy aspects set the topic in its social context, resulting in a broad-ranging volume of value to all those concerned with the science of ecologically effective environmental protection and management.

Increased industrial and agricultural activity this century has led to vast quantities of the earth's soil and groundwater resources becoming contaminated with hazardous chemicals. Bioremediation provides a technology based on the use of living organisms, usually bacteria and fungi, to remove pollutants from soil and water, preferably in situ. This approach, which is potentially more cost-effective than traditional techniques such as incineration of soils and carbon filtration of water, requires an understanding of how organisms transform chemicals, how they survive in polluted environments and how they should be employed in the field. This book examines these issues for many of the most serious and common environmental contaminants, resulting in a volume which presents the most recent position on the application of bioremediation to the cleanup of polluted soil and water.

The formation of microcolonies on surfaces is an important bacterial survival strategy. These biofilms occur on both inert and living systems, making them important to a wide range of scientific disciplines. This book first provides an analysis of the chemical, ecological and physical processes involved with the development of biofilms and their interactions with surfaces. The next section deals with biofilms on non-living surfaces. Biofilms have important engineering implications, such as in mining industries, the corrosion of pipelines and pure and waste water industries. Biofilms have medical significance when associated with the mouth, urinary tract and urinogenital tract. In addition, they form in plant root systems and in animals, such as the ruminant digestive tract, and so are agriculturally important. The final section examines these interactions with living surfaces.

Biological control of insect pests, plant pathogens and weeds, is the only major alternative to the use of pesticides in agriculture and forestry. As with all technologies, there are benefits and risks associated with their utilization. This book is the outcome of a unique gathering of specialists to discuss and debate the benefits and risks associated with biological control. After intensive interaction it was concluded that we must place greater emphasis on the benefits, while not ignoring the potential risks. The authors address the various techniques and approaches used in biological control, including state-of-the-art reports and economic and risk analyses. The book will be of interest to researchers and postgraduate students in academia and industry in biotechnology, agriculture, forestry and environmental sciences.

Over the past fifty years plant breeders have achieved impressive improvements in yield, quality and disease resistance. These gains suggest that many more modifications might be introduced if appropriate genes can be identified. Current DNA techniques allow the construction of transgenic plants and this important new book reviews the current state of knowledge. A team of leading researchers provide in-depth reviews at the cutting edge of technology for laboratory techniques for the transformation of important soil microorganisms and recalcitrant plants of economic value. The book is divided into three sections: soil microorganisms; cereal crops; and industrially important plants. The most effective methods used to date are compared, and their merits and limitations discussed. Some chapters emphasise case studies and applications. In cases where obstacles remain to be overcome, an overview of progress to date is given. The book will serve as a general guide and reference tool for those working on transformation in microbiology and plant science.