Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 17, 2026
09:49
Prospecting Microbial Strains for Bioremediation and Probiotics Development for Metaorganism Research and Preservation
Published on: October 31, 2019
Medical bioremediation: a concept moving toward reality
John Schloendorn1, Tim Webb, Kent Kemmish
1Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA. zauberkugel@gmail.com
Rejuvenation Research
|January 1, 2010
Summary
Catabolic insufficiency drives aging by accumulating toxic substances. Researchers discovered enzymes in microbes and plants that can break down harmful cholesterol derivatives and macular degeneration-linked lipofuscin, offering potential medical bioremediation strategies.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Microbiology
- Gerontology
Background:
- Aging is linked to catabolic insufficiency, where the body fails to break down accumulating substances.
- Substance buildup, like cholesterol in atherosclerosis and lipofuscin in macular degeneration, reaches toxic levels in old age.
- Medical bioremediation proposes using foreign enzymes to reverse these harmful accumulations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To discover microorganisms and enzymes capable of breaking down age-accumulated toxic substances.
- To identify enzymes that can reverse the effects of atherosclerosis and age-related macular degeneration.
Main Methods:
- Surveyed microorganisms for enzymes that transform cholesterol and its oxidized derivatives.
- Utilized cholesterol oxidase to reduce the toxicity of 7-ketocholesterol in cell cultures.
- Screened soil fungi, plants, and bacteria for enzymes that degrade carotenoid lipofuscin.
Main Results:
- Identified numerous bacteria capable of transforming cholesterol and 7-ketocholesterol.
- Demonstrated that cholesterol oxidase effectively reduces 7-ketocholesterol toxicity in human cells.
- Found that various enzymes (peroxidases, carotenoid cleavage oxygenases) can degrade macular degeneration-associated lipofuscin.
Conclusions:
- Microorganisms and enzymes with bioremediation potential for age-related diseases exist.
- Enzymatic breakdown of toxic accumulations offers a promising therapeutic avenue for aging diseases.
- Further research into these enzymes could lead to novel treatments for atherosclerosis and macular degeneration.
Related Concept Videos
00:46Bioremediation
Bioremediation is the use of prokaryotes, fungi, or plants to remove pollutants from the environment. This process has been used to remove harmful toxins in groundwater as a byproduct of agricultural run-off and also to clean up oil spills.
01:26Microbial Bioremediation of Hydrocarbons
Bioremediation is an environmentally sustainable process that employs living organisms—primarily microorganisms—to degrade or neutralize pollutants from contaminated environments. In oil spills and hydrocarbon pollution, bioremediation involves the use of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria to transform toxic compounds into less harmful substances. This approach leverages natural microbial metabolic processes and is considered both cost-effective and ecologically favorable compared to physical or...
01:25Microbial Bioremediation of Uranium
Microorganisms play a critical role in the transformation and immobilization of uranium in contaminated environments through four main pathways: bioreduction, biosorption, bioaccumulation, and biomineralization. These mechanisms reduce uranium’s toxicity and prevent its migration through groundwater systems, offering sustainable approaches for in situ bioremediation.Bioreduction of UraniumBioreduction is driven by anaerobic bacteria such as certain strains of Geobacter and Shewanella, which use...
01:28Microbial Bioremediation of Pesticides
Pesticides often feature structurally complex chemical architectures, incorporating halogen groups and multiple aromatic rings. These characteristics confer high chemical stability, rendering many pesticides resistant to natural degradation processes. This resistance poses significant environmental concerns, as persistent pesticide residues can accumulate in ecosystems and affect non-target organisms.Despite the inherent stability of many pesticides, certain microorganisms possess the metabolic...
01:30Microbial Wastewater Treatment
Microbial communities in aquatic ecosystems play a key role in the natural breakdown of contaminants introduced through domestic and industrial effluents. Acting as biological catalysts, these microbes change and mineralize a wide range of organic and inorganic pollutants under different redox conditions.In oxygen-rich surface waters, aerobic heterotrophs lead organic matter breakdown, using oxygen as the terminal electron acceptor to efficiently oxidize substrates to carbon dioxide and water.
01:30Environmental Applications of Microorganisms
Microorganisms play a pivotal role in maintaining ecosystem balance by recycling essential elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, as well as supporting processes like bioremediation, wastewater treatment, and biofuel production.Microbes in Elemental CyclesIn the carbon cycle, microorganisms decompose organic matter, releasing carbon dioxide via aerobic respiration. This carbon dioxide is subsequently used by photosynthetic organisms to synthesize organic compounds, closing the...