Rhizoremediation: A Promising Rhizosphere Technology

Abstract

Interactions between microorganisms and plants have undoubtedly had major effects on the development of civilization since humans began to rely extensively on cultivated crops for food. Positive and negative interactions take place not only between microbes but also between microbes and plants. The rhizosphere is a zone of predominantly commensal and mutualistic interactions between plants and microbes. Rhizospheric microbes can degrade the majority of environmental pollutants and degradation process stops when the microbe is deprived of food. These microbes have access to the best food source available in soil, namely root exudates. Microbial degradation of contaminants in the rhizosphere provides a positive effect for the plant; the pollutant concentration is decreased in the area near the roots and the plant can grow better than those in contaminated areas. Worldwide, contamination of soil and ground water is a severe problem. The negative effects of pollutants on the environment and on human health are diverse and depend on the nature of the pollution. Awareness about harms of pollution in the scientific world has aroused in 1990s but now even general public is highly concerned about this issue. The search for alternative methods for excavation and incineration to clean polluted sites resulted in the application of bioremediation techniques. A cost effective and highly ethical method Rhizoremediation which involves the breakdown of contaminants in soil resulting from microbial activity that is enhanced in rhizosphere. So, an effort is made to review the recent advancements on rhizoremediation-based abolition of heavy metals.