Decolorization of industrial effluents containing reactive dyes by actinomycetes

Actinomycete strains have been identified which decolorize effluents containing different types of reactive dyes. Adsorption of anthraquinone, phthalocyanine and azo dyes to the cells of some of the strains resulted in the decolorization of the effluents, but no degradation of the dyes was observed. In contrast, effluents containing an azo-copper complex and a formazan-copper complex dye were almost completely decolorized by several of the strains without adsorption to the cells. The observed changes in the visible spectra indicated a degradation during incubation with the strains.