Abstract
Crude oil and its derivatives are the most prevalent environmental pollutants to all biological systems and these products have severe impacts in the plant and animal ecosystem including human health. The present study aimed to treatment crude oil contaminated water and reduces genotoxicity induced by crude oil throughout biodegradation. Isolation of bacterial strain able to degrade crude oil was obtained and identified as Enterobacter sp. OCS1with 99% identity based on partial sequenced 16S rRNA analysis. This isolate was able to produce a biosurfactant during the course of hydrocarbon degradation. High biodegradation efficiency of heavy crude oil was observed after 14 days. It was 87.2% and 97.7% for heavy crude oil A and B, respectively. The current results indicated that the exposure of mice to crude oil, any of the two types under study, showed genotoxicity represented by increased the frequency of micronucleated cells in bone marrow and sperm abnormalities. In addition, they exhibited cytotoxicity as indicated by the decrease in polychromatic erythrocytes ration, sperm count, motility and sperm viability. However, treatment of crude oil contaminated water by isolated bacteria OCS1 resulted in a significant improvement in all tested parameters. The study suggests application of the OCS1 as an appropriate candidate for bioremediation of crude oil contaminants.