Mycoremediation of Heavy Metal and Hydrocarbon Pollutants by Endophytic Fungi

Abstract

Rapid pace of industrialization and urbanization leads to environmental pollution worldwide. The environmental pollution can be broadly divided into three major categories like air, water, and soil pollution. Anthropogenic activities exaggerate environmental pollution. This chapter reviews available data on the capability of fungi to remediate environmental pollutants. Fungi are powerful organisms having potential to degrade wide range of pollutants such as heavy metals, polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), insecticides, pesticides, components of petroleum oil, dyes, and many other hazardous as well as toxic compounds into simpler molecules. Mycoremediation using various species of fungi has potential for future development as it is an eco-friendly and a cost-effective method of bioremediation. It is a clean and green technology with high sustainability.