Food spoilage organisms were isolated using standard procedures on Nutrient Agar, Cetrimide Agar and Pseudomonas Agar Base (supplemented with CFC). The samples were categorized as animal products (raw fish, egg, raw chicken, corned beef, pasteurized milk) and plant products (vegetable salad, water leaf (Talinium triangulare), boiled rice, tomatoes and pumpkin leaf (Teifairia occidentalis).They were characterised as Pseudomonas putida, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas stutzeri, Burkholderia pseudomallei, Serratia rubidaea, Corynebacterium pilosum, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus mycoides, Bacillus laterosporus, Bacillus laterosporus, Serratia marcescens, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus macerans, Alcaligenes faecalis and Alcaligenes eutrophus. Preliminary screening for biosurfactant production was done using red blood haemolysis test and confirmed by slide test, drop collapse and oil spreading assay. The biosurfactant produced was purified using acetone and the composition determined initially using Molisch’s test, thin layer chromatography and gas chromatography mass spectrometry. The components were found to be ethanol, amino acids, butoxyacetic acid, hexadecanoic acid, oleic acid, lauryl peroxide, octadecanoic acid and phthalic acid. The producing organisms grew readily on several hydrocarbons such as crude oil, diesel oil and aviation fuel when used as sole carbon sources. The purified biosurfactants produced were able to cause emulsification of kerosene (19.71-27.14%) as well as vegetable oil (16.91-28.12%) based on the emulsification index. This result suggests that the isolates can be an asset and further work can exploit their optimal potential in industries.
Adebusoye S, Amund O, Ilori M, Domeih D, Okpuzor J. Growth and biosurfactant synthesis by nigerian hydrocarbon-degrading estuarine bacteria. Revista De Biologia Tropical. 2008;(4):1603–11.
2.
Adebusoye S, Ilori M, Amund O, Teniola O, Olatope S. Microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in a polluted tropical stream. World Journal of Microbiology & Biotechnology. 2007;(8):1149–59.
3.
Barathi S, Vasudevan N. Utilization of petroleum hydrocarbons by Pseudomonas fluorescens isolated from a petroleum-contaminated soil. Environment International. 2001;(5–6):413–6.
4.
Calvo C, Toledo F, Gonzalez-Lopez J. Surfactant activity of a naphthalene degrading Bacillus pumilus strain isolated from oil sludge. Journal of Biotechnology. 2004;(3):255–62.
5.
Cooper D, Goldenberg B. Surface-active agents from two bacillus species. Applied and environmental microbiology. 1987;(2):224–9.
6.
Franzetti A, Caredda P, Ruggeri C, La Colla P, Tamburini E, Papacchini M, et al. Potential applications of surface active compounds by Gordonia sp strain bs29 in soil remediation technologies. Chemosphere. 2009;(6):801–7.
7.
Gautam K, Tyagi V. A review of microbial surfactant. Journal of Oleo Science. 2006;(4):155–66.
8.
Holt J, Krieg N, Sneath P, Stalely J, Williams S. Bergey’s manual of determinative bacteriology. Bergey’s Manual of Determinative Bacteriology. 1994;
9.
Ilori M, Amobi C, Odocha A. Factors affecting biosurfactant production by oil degrading Aeromonas spp. Chemosphere. 2005;(7):985–92.
10.
Ilori M, Amund DI. Production of a peptidoglycolipid bioemulsifier by pseudomonas aeruginosa grown on hydrocarbon. Zeitschrift für Naturforschung C. 2001;(7–8):547–52.
11.
Jain D, Lee H, Trevors J. Effect of addition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa ug2 inocula or biosurfactants on biodegradation of selected hydrocarbons in soil. Journal of Industrial Microbiology. 1992;(2):87–93.
12.
Kim B, Lee J, Hwang B. In vivo control and in vitro antifungal activity of rhamnolipid b, a glycolipid antibiotic, against Phytophthora capsici and Colletotrichum orbiculare. Pest Management Science. 2000;(12):12–1029.
13.
Kitamoto D, Isoda H, Nakahara T. Functions and potential applications of glycolipid biosurfactants -from energy-saving materials to gene delivery carriers. Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering. 2002;(3):187–201.
14.
Krepsky N, Da Silva F, Fontana L, Crapez M. Alternative methodology for isolation of biosurfactantproducing bacteria. Brazilian Journal of Biology. 2007;(1):117–24.
15.
IJFS April. 2016;12–21.
16.
Kumar M, Leon V, Materano A, Ilzins O, Galindo-Castro I, Fuenmayor S. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon degradation by biosurfactantproducing Pseudomonas sp ir1. Zeitschrift Fur Naturforschung C-a Journal of Biosciences. 2006;(3–4):203–12.
17.
Morikawa M, Hirata Y, Imanaka T. A study on the structure-function relationship of lipopeptide biosurfactants. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids. 2000;(3):211–8.
18.
Mulligan C. Environmental applications for biosurfactants. Environmental Pollution. 2005;(2):183–98.
19.
Mulligan C, Cooper D, Neufeld R. Selection of microbes producing biosurfactants in media without hydrocarbons. Journal of Fermentation Technology. 1984;(4):311–4.
20.
Nitschke M, Pastore G. Production and properties of a surfactant obtained from Bacillus subtilis grown on cassava wastewater. Bioresource Technology. 2006;(2):336–41.
21.
Olutola P, Famurewa O, Sonntag H. An introduction to general microbiology (a practical approach). 2000;169–80.
22.
Patil J, Chopade B, Osmania Univ, Hyderabad ID. International Conference on Microbial Biotechnology trade and Public. Journal of Applied Microbiology. 2001;(2):290–8.
23.
Pinzon N, Ju LK. Improved detection of rhamnolipid production using agar plates containing methylene blue and cetyl trimethylammonium bromide. Biotechnology Letters. 2009;(10):1583–8.
24.
Ron E, Rosenberg E. Natural roles of biosurfactants. Environmental Microbi-ology. 2001;(4):229–36.
25.
Sarubbo L, De Luna J, De Campos-Takaki G. Production and stability studies of the bioemulsifier obtained from a new strain of Candida glabrata ucp 1002. Electronic Journal of Biotechnology. 2006;(4):4–6.
26.
Sim L, Ward P, Li ZY. Production and characterisation of a biosurfactant isolated from pseudomonas aeruginosa uw-1. Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology. 1997;(4):232–8.
27.
Tuleva B, Christova N, Cohen R, Antonova D, Todorov T, Stoineva I. Isolation and characterization of trehalose tetraester biosurfactants from a soil strain Micrococcus luteus bn56. Process Biochemistry. 2009;(2):135–41.
28.
Yakimov M, Timmis K, Wray V, Fredrickson H. Characterization of a new lipopeptide surfactant produced by thermotolerant and halotolerant subsurface bacillus licheniformis bas50. Applied and Environmental Microbiology. 1995;(5):1706–13.
The statements, opinions and data contained in the journal are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). We stay neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
