The paper presents the first physicochemical and microbiological studies conducted in the northern area of Svalbard (Spitsbergen). Ten sediment samples were collected from the bottom of the longest fjord in the region, Wijdef jorden. Bottom sediments from ten lakes located along the shores of Wijdefjorden and Woodfjorden were also sampled. Organic matter content (LOI), water content, temperature, pH, and salinity of the sediments were determined. The quantity of aerobic bacteria cultured on various growth media at 4 ° C, 14 ° C, and 37 ° C ranged from 10 2 to 10 6 cfu/g of wet sediment mass, depending on the type of sampling station (fjord or lake). The number of bacteria did not co rrelate with organic matter content. Out of the 37 bacterial strains isolated from Wijdefjorden, 48% and 70% revealed ureolytic and proteolytic activity, respectively. The proportion of freshwater strains with ureolytic and proteolytic activity was 32% and 55%, respectively. Antibiotic resistance testing indicated that bacterial strains from the bottom sediments of the lakes were resistant to 8 antibiotics (out of the 18 investigated). Possible sources of this resistance are discussed. Using 16S DNA analysis, bacterial isolates from the lakes were identified as Pseudomonas sp., whereas frequently occurring strains in bottom sediment of the fjord were Pseudoalteromonas sp.

The aim of this study was to investigate insect derived bacteria for the ability to dissolve insoluble soil phosphate to release soluble phosphorus compounds, available to plants. Bacterial isolates were obtained from Diabrotica virgifera, Hermetia illucens, Oulema melanopus, and Ostrinia nubilalis. An in vitro evaluation of phosphate solubilization ability on Pikovskaya’s medium was done and the phosphate solubilizing index (PSI) was calculated for each isolate. Bacteria were tested in a greenhouse experiment on seeds of oats, wheat, triticale, barley and soybeans. After incubation, the weight and length of their aerial plant parts were measured. The highest increase in the weight of aerial parts was recorded for oats after using strain Om046 for inoculation (88.98%), then, wheat (Dv097, 31.43%), soybean (strain 96, 53.79%), and triticale (bacterial consortium, 36.9%). Bacteria used were identified as Lactococcus lactis (strains Om030 and Om046), Acinetobacter sp. (Dv123), Lactococcus garvieae (Dv097) and Rothia kristinae (strains 90 and 96). We showed that a successful application of insect derived bacteria for phosphate solubilization in soil, to promote plant growth, is possible. Innovative agriculture requires constant improvements in increasing crop growth. Thus, new sources of bacterial strains effectively promoting plant growth, are needed. We described a new source of plant growth-promoting bacteria that can be used in agriculture.

This paper presents the qualitative and quantitative results of the research into potential pathogens of genus Staphylococcus in the air in the centre and in the recreational areas of Olsztyn. The qualitative examinations were conducted for one year, from October 2002 to September 2003, with one-month intervals between measurements, which were done at testing sites with the use of sedimentation and impaction methods of sampling. When the samples were taken by the sedimentation method, the average count of this type of bacteria at various sites was higher than in those taken by the impaction method. The colonies of Staphylococcus bacteria, isolated from air samples taken four times during the test period in October 2002, January, April and July 2003, were further identified down to the species, based on biochemical tests. A wider species diversity of this type of bacteria was found in the samples taken by the sedimentation method (8 species) than by the impaction method (3 species). Among the Staphylococcus bacteria isolated from air the following species dominated: S. xylosus 61% and S. len/us 15% when the samples were taken by the sedimentation method and 31 % and 62%, respectively, with the impaction method. When the samples were taken by the sedimentation method, 8% of Staphylococcus aureus and 2% Staphylococcus epidermidis were found among all the isolated bacteria (627 cfu/m3). These species were not found in the samples taken by the impaction method.

Numbers of saprophytic bacteria were determined by the plate count in samples obtained at 45 oceanographic stations, from six standard depths between 10 and 150 m. Depending on the sampling place, the numbers of bacteria fluctuated between 0.8 x 102 to 4.3 x l 04 x 1-1 and 1.2 x l07 to 1.3 x 108, in a water column under 1 m2 sea surface. Most of saprophytic bacteria were observed at stations located south and south-east of the King George Island, and also north and north-west of the Anvers Island. Fewer numbers were found in areas of large krill swarms in the Bransfield Strait, between 58°30' and 62°30' W, and in the north-western part of the research area, far away from the South Shetland Islands.

To save time and for the sake of convenience, we often reach for ready-to-eat meals, such as pre-made salads. But how safe are they?

Foodborne diseases pose a major public health problem in both developed and developing countries. Bacteria that form biofilms are especially difficult to combat and require careful countermeasures.

Investigations showing the possibility of BTX biodegradation present in the water environment under aerobic conditions have been presented. The effects of transformation of benzene, toluene, o-xylene and p-xylene by indigenous to sewage microorganisms as well as by isolated species of bacteria like Aeronwnas sobria, Bacillus steareothermophilus, Enterobacter sakazaki, Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Staphylococcus lentus and the mixture of these species varied distinctively. The results and calculated degradation rates have been compared to some results given by other authors. In aerobic conditions all investigated aromates have shown to be biodegradable. The highest rate of degradation was found for indigenous to municipal sewage microorganisms.

The research covered the determination: of the numbers or hcicrorrophic bacteria: psychrophil ic, psychrctolcrant, mcsophilic and percentage participation or hemolytic bacteria and .ieromonas hydrophila (with acrolysinc and hcmolysine genes) in the waters of the Drwęca River depending on environmental Ilictors and fishery management. The mean quantities 01· hclcrotrophic bacteria (Ht'C) at 4, 14 and 2~°C ranged: O. 78-7.57-101, 1.40-6.65-101 and 1.93-16.23- 103 efuen -3, respectively. The percentage participation 01· hemolytic heterotrophic bacteria (HemPC) and A. hvdrophila among psychrophilic, psychrotolcrant, mcsophilic microorganisms determined at 4, 14, 28°C, ranged: 7.9-10.4, 6.8-12.2, 8.6-22.0 ,111d 1.1-6.4%, respectively. Statistically significant correlation between examined bacteria and temperature values, flows and O2 saturations confirm that the occurrence of those microorganisms depends on the degree of microbiological contamination of that ecosystem, resulting from the fishery management and environmental factors.

The necessity of rational water resource management and reduction of water consumption demandsthat water utilities address water losses during water treatment. Therefore, the backwash water generated during the filtration process is often the focus of research aimed at its reuse within the water treatment system. The studies outlined here were conducted in a large water treatment plant (100,000 m3), focusing on the backwash water produced from sand bed filter flushing. Prior to its reintroduction into the treatment train, the backwash water underwent pre-treatment using ultrafiltration (UF) process with two different modules: a spiral module with a PVFD (200kDa) membrane and a capillary module with a PES (80kDa) membrane. The effectiveness of the process was evaluated based on the degree of retention of organic substances and microorganisms, which pose health risks in backwash water recirculation. The capillary membrane exhibited greater effectiveness in retaining these contaminants, thereby ensuring the complete elimination of pathogenic microorganisms. The study findings indicate that pre-treating backwash water using UF membranes and reintroducing it into the water treatment system before the ozonation process can lead to a reduction of environmental fees. However, this process results in a 1.5% increase in water treatment costs

53 soil samples collected in the Bellsund Region in Western Spitsbergen were examined. An acid-resistant strain difficult to identify was isolated and recognized as Mycobacterium friburgensis. 54.7% of isolated strains were acid-resistant and growing at 25˚C only. They were microorganisms at borderline of Mycobacteria and Actinomycetes. Other microorganisms isolated in the studied soil samples were bacilli (55.7%) and coccaceae (15.4%).

Iron-reducing bacteria (IRB) seek to unravel iron corrosion for oil and gas steel pipeline failure. IRB continued to be dominating the microbiological corrosion of iron structures in steel by deteriorating steel surface via Fe(III) reduction. The mechanisms by IRB mediate Fe(III) reduction into Fe(II) for bacterial respiration to contribute to iron steel corrosion. However, the complexity of corrosion is not fully comprehended. It remains controversial due to the corrosion mechanisms proposed by IRB that may induce or inhibit corrosion when engaged with microbial biofilm. In this brief review, understanding microbiological corrosion mechanisms associated with IRB interactions may better understand microbiological corrosion and derive corrosion control.

The paper presents the results of the studies on a degree of pollution and sanitary-bacteriological stale of bottom sediments of Wigry Lake in I 998 and 1999. Total Viable Count at 20°C (TYC 20°C) and Total Viable Count at 37°C (TYC 37°C) were used as indicators of pollution, while Total Coli (TC), Faecal Coli (FC), Faecal Streptococcus - Enterococcus (FS) and Clostridium perfringens - as indicators of the sanitary stale. Bottom sediment samples wen: collected from 3 sites situated in the centre of the lake and from 6 sites in the vicinity of the lake shore. Sanely and gravel offshore bottom sediments showed less degree or pollution than muddy bottom sediments collected from the centre or the lake. Higher numbers of anaerobic spore-forming and sulphite reducing bacteria (Clostridium pcrfringens) found at sites 1 and 2 in the vicinity of the mouth of Czarna Hańcza River lo Lake Wigry. At those places a higher bacteriological pol lution of bottom sediments samples was found.

The aim of this research was to evaluate the microbiological indoor air contamination level in chosen facilities of the primary health-care for adults and children. The total numbers of mesophilic bacteria, staphylococci, coli-group bacteria and moulds in both surgery rooms and patients’ waiting rooms were determined. Air samples were collected with a MAS 100 impactor and the concentration of microorganisms was estimated by a culture method. The microbiological air contamination level was diverse: the number of mesophilic bacteria ranged from 320 to 560 CFU/m3, number of staphylococci - 10-305 CFU/m3, coli group bacteria - 0-15 CFU/m3 and moulds - 15-35 CFU/m3. The bacteriological contamination level of the air in examined community health centers was higher than described in the literature for hospitals and exceeded the acceptable values proposed for the surgery objects.

Investigations showing the possibility of BTX biodegradation present in the water environment under anoxic conditions have been presented. The effects of transformation of benzene, toluene, o-xylene and p-xylene by indigenous to sewage microorganisms as well as by isolated species of bacteria like Aeromonas sobria, Enterobacter sakazaki, Pseudomonas aeruqinosa, Staphylococcus lentus and the mixture of these species varied distinctively. The results and calculated degradation rates have been compared to some results given by other authors. In anoxic conditions all investigated aromates have shown to be biodegradable. The highest rate of degradation was found for isolated species of bacteria from municipal sewage.

Many techniques of soil bioremediation enhancement have been developed recently. Two of them are application of weak electric field which induces favorable electrokinetic phenomena in the soil environment and surface active agents application which increase the biodegradation degree of poorly soluble contamination. During experiments the influence of the electric field and surfactants (biosurfactants, non-ionic and anionic surfactants) on the Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus subtilis bacteria migration in soil was determined. The intensity of the biodegradation of contamination was also estimated. The results show substantial impact of the electric field and surfactants on the intensity and direction of bacteria migration in soil as well as on the intensity of the contamination biodegradation.

Principles of bioluminescence have been described as well as some examples of the biotests that utilize natural bacterial luminescence for assessment of the effects of environment contamination and remediation have been reviewed. The achievements of the last eight years and a new outlook on using rapid biotests for waters, wastewaters, sediments and soils toxicity investigations have been taken into account.

The paper presents the results of studies on detection, occurrence and differentiation of the waterborne bacterial potential pathogens from Staphylococcus genus in the water of Wigry Lake watering places in north-eastern Poland. The samples of water were collected from June 1995 to September 1999 at one-month intervals, during bathing season. Eight sampling stations were selected in the most attended watering places of the lake, situated near landing stages, camping sites and holiday resorts were investigated. The watering places in the northern part of Lake Wigry (called Ploso Northern) showed the highest number of waterborne bacterial pathogens from Staphylococcus genus. The most numerous were species: Staphylocorcus capitis, Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus len/us and Staphylococcus xylosus. Pathogens from Staphylococcus aureus species identified in I 0% of water samples in the absence of faecal bacteria from Escherichia coli species (in 100 crn' of water). The Czarna Hańcza River, which brought a lot of purified sewage from Wastewater Treatment Plant in Suwałki to northern part of Wigry Lake has immense influence on the pollution of this part Wigry Lake.

Water is a strategic material. Recycling is an important component of balancing its use. Deep-bed filtration is an inexpensive purification method and seems to be very effective in spreading water recovery. Good filter designs, such as the fibrous filter, have high separation efficiency, low resistance for the up-flowing fluid and high retention capacity. However, one of the substantial problems of this process is the biofouling of the filter. Biofouling causes clogging and greatly reduces the life of the filter. Therefore, the melt-blown technique was used for the formation of novel antibacterial fibrous filters. Such filters are made of polypropylene composites with zinc oxide and silver nanoparticles on the fiber surface. These components act as inhibitors of bacterial growth in the filter and were tested in laboratory and full scale experiments. Antibacterial/bacteriostatic tests were performed on Petri dishes with E. coli and B. subtilis. Full scale experiments were performed on natural river water, which contained abiotic particles and mutualistic bacteria. The filter performance at industrial scale conditions was measured using a particle counter, a flow cytometer and a confocal microscope. The results of the experiments indicate a significant improvement of the composite filter performance compared to the regular fibrous filter. The differences were mostly due to a reduction in the biofouling effect.

Cold−adapted marine bacteria producing extracellular hydrolytic enzymes are important for their industrial application and play a key role in degradation of particulate or ganic matter in their natural environment. In this work, members of a previously−obtained protease−producing bacterial collection isolated from different marine sources from Potter Cove (King George Island, South Shetlands) were taxonomically identified and screened for their ability to produce other economically relevant enzymes. Eighty−eight proteolytic bacterial isolates were grouped into 25 phylotypes based on their Amplified Ribosomal DNA Restriction Analysis profiles. The sequencing of the 16S rRNA genes from representative isolates of the phylotypes showed that the predominant culturable protease−producing bacteria belonged to the class Gammaproteobacteria and were affiliated to the genera Pseudomonas , Shewanella , Colwellia , and Pseudoalteromonas , the latter being the predominant group (64% of isolates). In addition, members of the classes Actinobacteria, Bacilli and Flavobacteria were found. Among the 88 isolates screened we detected producers of amylases (21), pectinases (67), cellulases (53), CM−cellulases (68), xylanases (55) and agarases (57). More than 85% of the isolates showed at least one of the extracellular enzymatic activities tested, with some of them producing up to six extracellular enzymes. Our results confirmed that using selective conditions to isolate producers of one extracellular enzyme activity increases the probability of recovering bacteria that will also produce additional extracellular enzymes. This finding establishes a starting point for future programs oriented to the prospecting for biomolecules in Antarctica.

In this work the effectiveness of the biotransformation of phosphogypsum in the cultures of sulphatereducing bacteria (SRB) was studied. SRB were isolated from soil contaminated with automobile fuel. The microorganisms were grown by two methods: the enrichment of the cultures and microcosms in: Postgate, minimal medium (with phenol, acetate or lactate) and Emerson medium. All media contained phosphogypsum as electron acceptors. The isolated microorganisms were passage in medium containing different carbon compounds: ethanol, lactate, phenol, acetate casein or lactose to test the effectiveness of biotransformation of phosphogypsum depending on the source of carbon used. In cultures in Postgate medium with lactate or casein there were found the maximal H2S concentration (654 and 540 mg HS-/dm3) and maximal decrease of phosphogypsum 84% and 64%, respectively. The isolated microorganisms utilised alcohol, sugar, protein and phenol.

Seasonal changes in the numbers of sulphate-reducing bacteria in water, soil, the surface of sedge (Carex acutiformis Ehrb.) immersed in waler and roots (dead and live) were studied. The study on one of larger wetland near Olsztyn (Masurian Lake District) was carried out in two annual cycles. Sulphate-reducing bacteria in the studied ecosystems occurred sporadically and generally in inappreciable count. Their count did not exceed 20 cells in I cm3 ofwaler; in the soil and in di ffercnt parts of sedge the number of bacteria ranged from several lo over dozen thousands cells in I g of dry weight. In the first year of studies these bacteria were the most numerous in June, July and during first days of December, bul in the second - in April (in soil and sedge immersed in water), in August (in soil and dead and live roots), in November (in waler, soil, sedge immersed in water and dead roots) and exceptionally in other months.

The fairy shrimp is a freshwater crustacean found in both temporary and permanent freshwaters. In Thailand, fairy shrimp are farmed as live food for ornamental fish. This study aimed to investigate the bacterial compositions in two fairy shrimp species, Branchinella thailandensis and Streptocephalus sirindhornae. Both species were cultured, and total DNA was extracted. The V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was amplified and sequenced using Illumina Miseq. All data were analyzed by Illumina 16S Metagenomics (version 1.0.1) workflow in Base Space- Illumina. Each read was blasted against the Illumina-curated version of the Greengenes database to determine the operational taxonomic units (OTUs) corresponding to the 16S rRNA gene sequence. The results showed that the Shanon-Weiner diversity index of bacterial compositions in B. thailandensis and S. sirindhornae were 2.135 and 3.122, respectively. The evenness and genus-level richness of the bacterial composition in B. thailandensis were 0.364 and 354 genera, respectively. The dominant bacterium found in B. thailandensis was Nevskia. In S. sirindhornae, the evenness and genus-level richness of the bacterial composition were 0.521 and 400 genera, respectively. Azohydromonas was the dominant bacterium. Our results showed that the compositions and proportions of bacterial communities were specific to each species of fairy shrimp. This study will be useful for further experiments in aquaculture and ecological studies related to symbiotic interaction.