A REVIEW OF BACTERIAL-DEGRADATION OF PESTICIDES

Pesticide fate in the environment is affected by microbial activity. S ome pesticides are readily degraded by microorganisms, others have pro ven to be recalcitrant. A diverse group of bacteria, including members of the genera Alcaligenes, Flavobacterium, Pseudomonas and Rhodococcu s, metabolize pesticides. Microbial degradation depends not only on th e presence of microbes with the appropriate degradative enzymes, but a lso on a wide range of environmental parameters. This review describes recent advances in biodegradation of pesticides by addressing the bio logy and molecular characterization of some pesticide degrading bacter ia.