Mycoremediation as a Potentially Promising Technology: Current Status and Prospects—A Review

The study provides a comprehensive analysis of the potential and current advancements in mycoremediation, the bioremediation technology using fungi to degrade environmental pollutants.

Fungal Mechanisms for Pollutant Degradation

The review emphasizes the unique metabolic capabilities of fungi, particularly their ligninolytic enzymes such as laccases, lignin peroxidases, and manganese peroxidases. These extracellular enzymes enable fungi to break down emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals and phthalates, and persistent organic pollutants (POPs), such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides and industrial dyes, which are resistant to conventional microbial degradation. Both oxidative and hydrolytic enzyme systems are used by fungi, enabling the detoxification and transformation of pollutants into less harmful products. This makes fungi ideal candidates for degrading complex and recalcitrant pollutants, including petroleum hydrocarbons, phenols, and chlorinated compounds.

Heavy Metal Sequestration

Fungi can also play an important role in the biosorption and bioaccumulation of heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, and mercury. Fungal cell walls act as biosorbents due to the presence of functional groups like amines and carboxylates, which bind heavy metals from contaminated water and soil. This offers a sustainable, cost-effective method for heavy metal remediation, compared to conventional methods such as chemical precipitation and ion exchange.

Current Applications and Advances

Fungi have already been successfully applied in oil spill bioremediation, wastewater treatment, and agricultural waste management. Furthermore, fungi's ability to operate under extreme environmental conditions, such as acidic or saline environments, makes them particularly versatile in various remediation scenarios.

Challenges in Mycoremediation

Despite its potential, mycoremediation is not without challenges. The article identifies several hurdles in scaling up laboratory successes to real-world applications. Environmental factors, such as pH, temperature, and the presence of other contaminants, can affect fungal efficiency. Moreover, slow fungal growth rates and difficulties in maintaining fungal populations over extended periods in contaminated sites pose practical challenges. The review suggests that enhancing the field applicability of fungi might require genetic engineering to improve their tolerance to harsh environments and optimize enzyme production.

Future Directions and Prospects

Future full scale applications can become possible thanks to biotechnological advancements such as genetically modified fungi and synthetic biology to improve pollutant degradation efficiency. The potential to combine mycoremediation with other bioremediation methods, such as bacterial degradation, could enhance pollutant removal rates and scope. Furter research into optimizing fungal strains, understanding enzyme mechanisms more thoroughly, and conducting large-scale field trials to realize the full potential of mycoremediation will be required.

In summary, mycoremediation holds significant promise as an eco-friendly, cost-effective solution for remediating various environmental pollutants, though further advancements are necessary to address current limitations and scale the technology for widespread use.

The study “Mycoremediation as a Potentially Promising Technology: Current Status and Prospects—A Review” by S.O. Akpasi et al was published in Applied Sciences.