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Kaohsiung scientists find dioxin-munching bacteria

Microbiologists at two universities in Kaohsiung City have discovered a bacteria capable of breaking down the poisonous substance dioxin efficiently and are trying to apply the species to a mass purging process to save on the time and cost involved in removing the pollutant, academic sources said.

National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU) and Cheng Shiu University (CSU) started the project with the aim of remedying the aftermath of dioxin pollution incidents, which at present cost millions of dollars to clean up and require the replacement of contaminated soil with clean soil.

Under the present method of treatment "the polluted soil still presents a health threat to humans and animals as there is no effective way of decomposing the substance," said Chang Chien Guo-pin (張簡國平), director of the CSU's Super Micro Mass Research and Technology Center.

Dioxin, a general term for a group of hundreds of highly persistent chemicals, is a by-product emitted in the production of herbicides, disinfectants and other agents. Dioxin has been proven to cause cancer and other diseases in humans.

The project was first initiated when a CSU team found that hundreds of bacterium species can survive and prosper in dioxin-laced soil, indicating that some of them must have the ability to "digest" and live off the chemical.

Later, Chang Chien said, they decided to cooperate with microbiologists from NSYSU to differentiate the various species -- among the several candidate bacteria, only one can break down the chemical with great efficiency, while the others work too slowly to attain economies of scale.

The bacterium -- which Chang Chien declined to identify as the patent application for the cultivation and purging process is still undergoing review -- is under intense scrutiny by the researchers to determine if it can also work at the same efficacy and efficiency outside the laboratory.

"Once the method proves workable, it will save billions of dollars that would otherwise have to be spent on removing polluted soil," Chang Chien said.
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