Heavy metals assessment of ecosystem polluted with wastewaters and taxonomic profiling of multi-resistant bacteria with potential for petroleum hydrocarbon catabolism in nitrogen-limiting medium.

The coexistence of heavy metals (HMs) and petroleum hydrocarbons (PHs) exacerbates ecotoxicity and impair the drivers of eco-functionalities that stimulate essential nutrients for the productivity of the impacted environment. Profiling the bacteria that stem the ecological impact via HMs sequestration and PHs catabolism with nitrogen fixation is imperative to bioremediation of the polluted sites. The sediment of site that was consistently contaminated with industrial wastewaters was analysed for ecological toxicants and the bacterial strains that combined HMs resistance with PHs catabolism in a nitrogen-limiting system were isolated from the sediment and characterized. The geochemistry of the samples revealed the co-occurrence of the above-benchmark concentrations of HMs with the derivatives of hydrocarbons. Notwithstanding, nickel and mercury (with 5% each of the total metal concentrations in the polluted site) exhibited probable effect concentrations on the biota and thus hazardous to the ecosystem. Approx. 31% of the bacterial community, comprising unclassified Planococcaceae, unclassified Bradyrhizobiaceae, Rhodococcus, and Bacillus species, resisted 160 µmol Hg2+ in the nitrogen-limiting system within 24 h post-inoculation. The bacterial strains adopt volatilization, and sometimes in combination with adsorption/bioaccumulation strategies to sequester Hg2+ toxicity while utilizing PHs as sources of carbon and energy. Efficient metabolism of petroleum biomarkers (> 87%) and Hg2+ sequestration (≥ 75% of 40 µmol Hg2+) displayed by the selected bacterial strains portend the potential applicability of the bacilli for biotechnological restoration of the polluted site.

Chromium contamination accentuates changes in the microbiome and heavy metal resistome of a tropical agricultural soil.

The impacts of hexavalent chromium (Cr) contamination on the microbiome, soil physicochemistry, and heavy metal resistome of a tropical agricultural soil were evaluated for 6 weeks in field-moist microcosms consisting of a Cr-inundated agricultural soil (SL9) and an untreated control (SL7). The physicochemistry of the two microcosms revealed a diminution in the total organic matter content and a significant dip in macronutrients phosphorus, potassium, and nitrogen concentration in the SL9 microcosm. Heavy metals analysis revealed the detection of seven heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Fe, Cd, Se, Pb, Cr) in the agricultural soil (SL7), whose concentrations drastically reduced in the SL9 microcosm. Illumina shotgun sequencing of the DNA extracted from the two microcosms showed the preponderance of the phyla, classes, genera, and species of Actinobacteria (33.11%), Actinobacteria_class (38.20%), Candidatus Saccharimonas (11.67%), and Candidatus Saccharimonas aalborgensis (19.70%) in SL7, and Proteobacteria (47.52%), Betaproteobacteria (22.88%), Staphylococcus (16.18%), Staphylococcus aureus (9.76%) in SL9, respectively. Functional annotation of the two metagenomes for heavy metal resistance genes revealed diverse heavy metal resistomes involved in the uptake, transport, efflux, and detoxification of various heavy metals. It also revealed the exclusive detection in SL9 metagenome of resistance genes for chromium (chrB, chrF, chrR, nfsA, yieF), cadmium (czcB/czrB, czcD), and iron (fbpB, yqjH, rcnA, fetB, bfrA, fecE) not annotated in SL7 metagenome. The findings from this study revealed that Cr contamination induces significant shifts in the soil microbiome and heavy metal resistome, alters the soil physicochemistry, and facilitates the loss of prominent members of the microbiome not adapted to Cr stress.

Ecological risk potentials of petroleum hydrocarbons and heavy metals shape the bacterial communities of marine hydrosphere at Atlantic Ocean, Atlas Cove, Nigeria.

Trans-Atlantic voyage of petroleum often leads to marine pollution with petroleum hydrocarbons (PHs) and heavy metals (HMs) that defines structures of autochthonous bacteria in the hydrosphere. Bacterial taxa of marine sediments exposed to petroleum transport activities were profiled using 16S rDNA metagenomics and correlated with the geochemistry to establish their impact on the microbiome. The physico-chemistry of the marine systems revealed varied degrees of contamination with PHs and HMs exceeding recommended threshold for aquatic life. Ecological risk assessment based on organic carbon of the sediment established phenanthrene, anthracene, and pyrene posed high risks (index risk quotient >32) to marine life. The most dominant phylum of the 44 bacterial phyla in the marine-sphere was Proteobacteria with relative abundance of 45-77% in the sampling locations. Relative dominance of Proteobacteria in the sediments spanned Gammaproteobacteria (17-25%), Deltaproteobacteria (12-20%), and Alphaproteobacteria (7-14%). Whereas, more operational taxonomic units (OTUs) belonging to Epsilonproteobacteria (19 ± 2.4%) were found in estuarine sediment unlike < 0.5% relative abundances obtained from oceanic sediments. Sulfurimonas apparently dominated the bacterial genera with up to 2.16 ± 0.19% abundance in oceanic sediments. Canonical correspondence analysis revealed that PHs shaped the structure of bacterial OTUs in oceanic sediments where petroleum loading/offloading occurs unlike in some kilometres a yonder where HMs correlated with the bacteria structure. The dominant bacteria might possibly pivotal to ecophysiologies of hydrocarbon contaminated marine environment, and would be pertinent to biotechnological applications for possible bioremediation campaign.

Structural dynamics of microbial communities in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-contaminated tropical estuarine sediments undergoing simulated aerobic biotreatment.

Coastal sediments contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can be candidates for remediation via an approach like land farming. Land farming converts naturally anaerobic sediments to aerobic environments, and the response of microbial communities, in terms of community structure alterations and corresponding effects on biodegradative activities, is unknown. A key goal of this study was to determine if different sediments exhibited common patterns in microbial community responses that might serve as indicators of PAH biodegradation. Sediments from three stations in the Lagos Lagoon (Nigeria) were used in microcosms, which were spiked with a mixture of four PAH, then examined for PAH biodegradation and for shifts in microbial community structure by analysis of diversity in PAH degradation genes and Illumina sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. PAH biodegradation was similar in all sediments, yet each exhibited unique microbiological responses and there were no microbial indicators of PAH bioremediation common to all sediments.

Unveiling genome sequence of Bacillus safensis strain WOB7 KX774196, a linamarin-utilizing bacterium (LUB) isolated from cassava wastewater (CWW) in Lagos State, Nigeria.

Bacillus safensis strain WOB7 is a linamarin-utilizing bacterium (LUB) that was isolated from cassava wastewater obtained from a processing factory. We present here the draft genome sequence of the strain (WOB7). These data provide valuable information on the prospects of the linamarase and other genes of importance associated with cyanogen detoxification.

Analysis of the genome of Bacillus safensis strain WOB3 KX774195, a Linamarin-utilizing bacterium (LUB) isolated from Cassava wastewater (CWW), Lagos State, Nigeria.

Linamarin-utilizing bacterium (LUB) is a microorganism that uses and breaks down cassava's principal cyanogenic compound, linamarin. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of Bacillus safensis strain WOB3 (previously Bacillus pumilus strain WOB3) sequenced and assembled with a total reads of 8,750,054 bp. The genome has 1,269 contigs and, G+C content of 41.55%. The genome has 4,749 total genes, 4,614 protein-coding sequences (CDSs), 3, 8 and 10 rRNA genes, 74 tRNA genes, and 5 ncRNA genes. This whole genome shotgun project has been deposited in GenBank under accession number JAYSGU000000000.

Draft genome sequence of Bacillus safensis strain WOIS2 KX774194, a nitrile-metabolizing bacterium isolated from solid waste leachates at Olusosun dumpsite, Ojota, Lagos State, Nigeria.

Bacillus safensis strain WOIS2, a nitrile-metabolizing bacterium, was isolated from solid waste leachates at the Olusosun dumpsite, Ojota, Lagos State, Nigeria. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of strain WOIS2. These data provide valuable information on the bioprospecting of B. safensis nitrilase and other intriguing genes of interest.

Draft Genome Sequence and Annotation of the Synthetic Textile Dye-Decolorizing Strain Bacillus amyloliquefaciens AD20, Isolated from a Dye Waste Pond.

A limited number of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens genome sequences have been generated and are available in the public domain from soil, fermented foods, and plants. Here, we report the whole-genome sequence of B. amyloliquefaciens AD20, isolated from a dye pond with azo dye decolorization capabilities.

Effects of corn steep liquor on growth rate and pyrene degradation by Pseudomonas strains.

The growth rates and pyrene degradation rates of Pseudomonas sp. LP1 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa LP5 were increased in corn steep liquor (CSL) supplemented. On pyrene alone the highest specific growth rate of LP1 was 0.018 h(-1), while on CSL-supplemented pyrene MSM, the value was 0.026 h(-)1. For LP5 the highest growth rate on CSL-supplemented pyrene-MSM was 0.034 h(-1). Conversely, on pyrene alone the highest rate was 0.024 h(-1). CSL led to marked reduction in residual pyrene. In the case of Pseudomonas sp. LP1 values of residual pyrene were 58.54 and 45.47%, respectively, for the unsupplemented and supplemented broth cultures, showing a difference of 13.09%. For LP5 the corresponding values were 64.01 and 26.96%, respectively, showing a difference of 37.05%. The rate of pyrene utilization by LP1 were 0.08 and 0.11 mg l(-1) h(-1) on unsupplemented and supplemented media, respectively. The corresponding values for LP5 were 0.07 and 0.015 mg l(-1) h(-1), respectively. These results suggest that CSL, a cheap and readily available waste product, could be very useful in the bioremediation of environments contaminated with pyrene.

Bacteria with dual resistance to elevated concentrations of heavy metals and antibiotics in Nigerian contaminated systems.

Samples of soil, water, and sediments from industrial estates in Lagos were collected and analyzed for heavy metals and physicochemical composition. Bacteria that are resistant to elevated concentrations of metals (Cd(2+), Co(2+), Ni(2+), Cr(6+), and Hg(2+)) were isolated from the samples, and they were further screened for antibiotic sensitivity. The minimum tolerance concentrations (MTCs) of the isolates with dual resistance to the metals were determined. The physicochemistry of all the samples indicated were heavily polluted. Twenty-two of the 270 bacterial strains isolated showed dual resistances to antibiotics and heavy metals. The MTCs of isolates to the metals were 14 mM for Cd(2+), 15 mM for Co(2+) and Ni(2+), 17 mM for Cr(6+), and 10 mM for Hg(2+). Five strains (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Actinomyces turicensis, Acinetobacter junni, Nocardia sp., and Micrococcus sp.) resisted all the 18 antibiotics tested. Whereas Rhodococcus sp. and Micrococcus sp. resisted 15 mM Ni(2+), P. aeruginosa resisted 10 mM Co(2+). To our knowledge, there has not been any report of bacterial strains resisting such high doses of metals coupled with wide range of antibiotics. Therefore, dual expressions of antibiotics and heavy-metal resistance make the isolates, potential seeds for decommissioning of sites polluted with industrial effluents rich in heavy metals, since the bacteria will be able to withstand in situ antibiosis that may prevail in such ecosystems.

Comparative geochemical evaluation of toxic metals pollution and bacterial communities of industrial effluent tributary and a receiving estuary in Nigeria.

Toxic metals/metalloid contaminations of estuarine sediments due to compromised tributaries arouse significant interest in studying bacterial community that triggers natural attenuation processes. Geo-accumulation index (Igeo), contamination factor (CF), pollution load index (PLI), and Hakanson potential ecological risk index (RI) as a sum of risk factors (Er) were used to quantify toxic metal/metalloid-pollution status of Lagos Lagoon (2W) and 'Iya-Alaro' tributary (4W) sediments in comparison with pristine 'Lekki Conservation Centre' sediment (L1-B). Bacteriology of the ecosystems was based on culture-independent analyses using pyrosequencing. 2W and 4W were extremely contaminated with mercury (Igeo > 7), whereas, cadmium contamination was only observed in 4W. The two ecosystems were polluted with toxic metal based on PLI, where mercury (Er = 2900 and 1900 for 4W and 2W, respectively) posed very high ecological risks. Molecular fingerprinting revealed that Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Acidobacteria predominately contributed the 20 most abundant genera in the two ecosystems. The 240 and 310 species present in 2W and 4W, respectively, but absent in L1-B, thrive under the metal concentrations in the polluted hydrosphere. Whereas, the 58,000 species missing in 2W and 4W but found in L1-B would serve as indicators for systems impacted with metal eco-toxicity. Despite toxic metal pollution of the ecosystems understudied, bacterial communities play vital roles in self-recovery processes occurring in the hydrosphere.

Evidence of aerobic utilization of di-ortho-substituted trichlorobiphenyls as growth substrates by Pseudomonas sp. SA-6 and Ralstonia sp. SA-4.

Robust and effective bioremediation strategies have not yet been developed for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-contaminated soils. This is in part a result of the fact that ortho- or ortho- and para-substituted congeners, frequent dead-end products of reductive dechlorination of PCB mixtures, have greatly reduced aerobic biodegradability. In this study, we report substantial evidence of utilization of diortho-substituted trichlorobiphenyls (triCBs) as growth substrates by Ralstonia sp. SA-4 and Pseudomonas sp. SA-6 in which ortho-substitution resulted in no obvious patterns of recalcitrance. These stains exhibited unusual preferences for growth on congeners chlorinated on both rings. Substrate uptake studies with benzoate-grown cells revealed that the isolates attacked the 2-chlorophenyl rings of 2,2',4- and 2,2',5-triCB. Between 71% and 93% of the initial 0.23-0.34 mM dose of congeners were transformed in less than 261 h concomitant with non-stoichiometric production of respective dichlorobenzoates and chloride ion. In enzyme assays, activity of 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl-1,2-dioxygenase was constitutive. Additionally, these strains harboured no detectable plasmids which, coupled with exponential growth on the two triCB congeners, suggested chromosomal location of PCB degradative genes. In addition to the fact that there is a paucity of information on degradation of PCBs by tropical isolates, growth on triCBs as a sole carbon and energy source has never been demonstrated for any natural or engineered microorganisms. Such isolates may help prevent accumulation of ortho-substituted congeners in natural systems and offer the hope for development of effective bioaugmentation or sequential anaerobic-aerobic bioremediation strategies.

Metabolism of chlorinated biphenyls: use of 3,3'- and 3,5-dichlorobiphenyl as sole sources of carbon by natural species of Ralstonia and Pseudomonas.

Ralstonia sp. SA-3, Ralstonia sp. SA-4 and Pseudomonas sp. SA-6 are natural strains with a novel capacity to utilize meta-substituted dichlorobiphenyls (diCBs) hitherto not known to serve as a sole source of carbon and energy for polychlorobiphenyl-degraders. In growth experiments, axenic cultures of isolates grew logarithmically on 3,3'-diCB with generation times that ranged insignificantly (t-test, P>0.05) from 30.4 to 33.8 h. Both 3-chlorobenzoate (3-CBA) and chloride produced as metabolites were recovered in non-stoichiometric quantities. The release of chloride by the cultures lagged substantially, indicating that the initial dioxygenase attack preceded cleavage of carbon-chloride bonds and that chloride must have been released from the chlorinated hydroxypentadienoate. In the case of 3,5-diCB, SA-3 and SA-6 metabolised this substrate primarily to 3,5-CBA. The lack of chloride in the culture media coupled with stoichiometric recovery of 3,5-CBA suggests that growth by these strains occurred predominantly at the expense of the unsubstituted phenyl ring. The unique metabolic properties of these three aerobic isolates point to their potential usefulness as seeds for bioremediation of PCBs polluted environments without the need for repeated inoculation or supplementation by a primary growth substrate such as biphenyl.

Growth and biosurfactant synthesis by Nigerian hydrocarbon-degrading estuarine bacteria.

The ability of microorganisms to degrade petroleum hydrocarbons is important for finding an environmentally-friendly method to restoring contaminated environmental matrices. Screening of hydrocarbon-utilizing and biosurfactant-producing abilities of organisms from an estuarine ecosystem in Nigeria, Africa, resulted in the isolation of five microbial strains identified as Corynebacterium sp. DDV1, Flavobacterium sp. DDV2, Micrococcus roseus DDV3, Pseudomonas aeruginosa DDV4 and Saccharomyces cerevisae DDV5. These isolates grew readily on several hydrocarbons including hexadecane, dodecane, crude oil and petroleum fractions. Axenic cultures of the organisms utilized diesel oil (1.0% v/v) with generation times that ranged significantly (t-test, P < 0.05) between 3.25 and 3.88 day, with concomitant production of biosurfactants. Kinetics of growth indicates that biosurfactant synthesis occurred predominantly during exponential growth phase, suggesting that the bioactive molecules are primary metabolites. Strains DDV1 and DDV4 were evidently the most metabolically active in terms of substrate utilization and biosurfactant synthesis compared to other strains with respective emulsification index of 63 and 78%. Preliminary biochemical characterization indicates that the biosurfactants are heteropolymers consisting of lipid, protein and carbohydrate moieties. The hydrocarbon catabolic properties coupled with biosurfactant-producing capabilities is an asset that could be exploited for cleanup of oil-contaminated matrices and also in food and cosmetic industries.

Characterization of bacterial community structure in a hydrocarbon-contaminated tropical African soil.

The bacterial community structure in a hydrocarbon-contaminated Mechanical Engineering Workshop (MWO) soil was deciphered using 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis. Four hundred and thirty-seven clones cutting across 13 bacterial phyla were recovered from the soil. The representative bacterial phyla identified from MWO soil are Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Planctomycetes, Ignavibacteriae, Spirochaetes, Chlamydiae, Candidatus Saccharibacteria and Parcubacteria. Proteobacteria is preponderant in the contaminated soil (51.2%) with all classes except Epsilonproteobacteria duly represented. Rarefaction analysis indicates 42%, 52% and 77% of the clone library is covered at the species, genus and family/class delineations with Shannon diversity (H') and Chao1 richness indices of 5.59 and 1126, respectively. A sizeable number of bacterial phylotypes in the clone library shared high similarities with strains previously described to be involved in hydrocarbon biodegradation. Novel uncultured genera were identified that have not been previously reported from tropical African soil to be associated with natural attenuation of hydrocarbon pollutants. This study establishes the involvement of a wide array of physiologically diverse bacterial groups in natural attenuation of hydrocarbon pollutants in soil.

Aerobic degradation of di- and trichlorobenzenes by two bacteria isolated from polluted tropical soils.

Two polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs)-degrading bacteria were isolated by traditional enrichment technique from electrical transformer fluid (Askarel)-contaminated soils in Lagos, Nigeria. They were classified and identified as Enterobacter sp. SA-2 and Pseudomonas sp. SA-6 on the basis of 16S rRNA gene analysis, in addition to standard cultural and biochemical techniques. The strains were able to grow extensively on dichloro- and trichlorobenzenes. Although they failed to grow on tetrachlorobenzenes, monochloro- and dichlorobenzoic acids, they were able to utilize all monochlorobiphenyls, and some dichlorobiphenyls as sole sources of carbon and energy. The effect of incubation with axenic cultures on the degradation of 0.9 mM 1,4-dichlorobenzene, 0.44 mM 1,2,3- and 0.43 mM 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene in mineral salts medium was studied. Approximately, 80-90% of these xenobiotics were degraded in 200 h, concomitant with cell increase of up to three orders of magnitude, while generation times ranged significantly (P<0.05) from 17-32 h. Catechol 1,2-dioxygenase and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase activities were detected in crude cell-free extracts of cultures pre-grown with benzoate, with the latter enzyme exhibiting a slightly higher activity (0.15-0.17 micromolmin(-1) mg of protein(-1)) with catechol, suggesting that the meta-cleavage pathway is the most readily available catabolic route in the SA strains. The wider substrate specificity of these tropical isolates may help in assessing natural detoxification processes and in designing bioremediation and bioaugmentation methods.

Properties, environmental fate and biodegradation of carbazole.

The last two decades had witnessed extensive investigation on bacterial degradation of carbazole, an N-heterocyclic aromatic hydrocarbon. Specifically, previous studies have reported the primary importance of angular dioxygenation, a novel type of oxygenation reaction, which facilitates mineralization of carbazole to intermediates of the TCA cycle. Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria are the predominant bacterial phyla implicated in this novel mode of dioxygenation, while anthranilic acid and catechol are the signature metabolites. Several studies have elucidated the degradative genes involved, the diversity of the car gene clusters and the unique organization of the car gene clusters in marine carbazole degraders. However, there is paucity of information regarding the environmental fate as well as industrial and medical importance of carbazole and its derivatives. In this review, attempt is made to harness this information to present a comprehensive outlook that not only focuses on carbazole biodegradation pathways, but also on its environmental fate as well as medical and industrial importance of carbazole and its derivatives.

Degradation of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons by two strains of Pseudomonas.

The goal of this investigation was to isolate competent polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons degraders that can utilize polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons of former industrial sites at McDoel Switchyard in Bloomington, Indiana. Using conventional enrichment method based on soil slurry, we isolated, screened and purified two bacterial species strains PB1 and PB2. Applying the ribotyping technique using the 16S rRNA gene analysis, the strains were assigned to the genus Pseudomonas (Pseudomonas plecoglossicida strain PB1 and Pseudomonas sp. PB2). Both isolates showed promising metabolic capacity on pyrene sprayed MS agar plates during the preliminary investigations. Using time course studies in the liquid cultures at calculated concentrations 123, 64, 97 and 94ppm for naphthalene, chrysene, fluroanthene and pyrene, P. plecoglossicida strain PB1 and Pseudomonas sp. PB2 showed partial utilization of the polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons. Naphthalene was degraded between 26% and 40%, chrysene 14% and 16%, fluroanthene 5% and 7%; pyrene 8% and 13% by P. plecoglossicida strain PB1 and Pseudomonas sp. PB2 respectively. Based on their growth profile, we developed a model R(2)=1 to predict the degradation rate of slow polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon-degraders where all the necessary parameters are constant. From this investigation, we confirm that the former industrial site soil microbial communities may be explored for the biorestoration of the industrial site.

Microbial Communities in Sediments of Lagos Lagoon, Nigeria: Elucidation of Community Structure and Potential Impacts of Contamination by Municipal and Industrial Wastes.

Estuarine sediments are significant repositories of anthropogenic contaminants, and thus knowledge of the impacts of pollution upon microbial communities in these environments is important to understand potential effects on estuaries as a whole. The Lagos lagoon (Nigeria) is one of Africa's largest estuarine ecosystems, and is impacted by hydrocarbon pollutants and other industrial and municipal wastes. The goal of this study was to elucidate microbial community structure in Lagos lagoon sediments to identify groups that may be adversely affected by pollution, and those that may serve as degraders of environmental contaminants, especially polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Sediment samples were collected from sites that ranged in types and levels of anthropogenic impacts. The sediments were characterized for a range of physicochemical properties, and microbial community structure was determined by Illumina sequencing of the 16S rRNA genes. Microbial diversity (species richness and evenness) in the Apapa and Eledu sediments was reduced compared to that of the Ofin site, and communities of both of the former two were dominated by a single operational taxonomic unit (OTU) assigned to the family Helicobacteraceae (Epsilonproteobacteria). In the Ofin community, Epsilonproteobacteria were minor constituents, while the major groups were Cyanobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes, which were all minor in the Apapa and Eledu sediments. Sediment oxygen demand (SOD), a broad indicator of contamination, was identified by multivariate analyses as strongly correlated with variation in alpha diversity. Environmental variables that explained beta diversity patterns included SOD, as well as levels of naphthalene, acenaphthylene, cobalt, cadmium, total organic matter, or nitrate. Of 582 OTU identified, abundance of 167 was significantly correlated (false discovery rate q≤ 0.05) to environmental variables. The largest group of OTU correlated with PAH levels were PAH/hydrocarbon-degrading genera of the Oceanospirillales order (Gammaproteobacteria), which were most abundant in the hydrocarbon-contaminated Apapa sediment. Similar Oceanospirillales taxa are responsive to marine oil spills and thus may present a unifying theme in marine microbiology as bacteria adapted for degradation of high hydrocarbon loads, and may represent a potential means for intrinsic remediation in the case of the Lagos lagoon sediments.