Papers by Noureddine Bousserrhine
Short Term Treated Wastewater Reuse Impact on Soil Microbial Biomass, Bacterial Functional Diversity and Enzymatic Activities in the Presence of Earthworms Eisenia andrei
Advances in science, technology & innovation, 2018
Tunisia, being arid to semi-arid country, is facing water shortage of increasing severity. Water ... more Tunisia, being arid to semi-arid country, is facing water shortage of increasing severity. Water scarcity problems are expected to intensify as a result of population growth, rising living standards and accelerated urbanisation.
Molecules, Mar 8, 2022
Understanding ecological trajectories after mine site rehabilitation is essential to develop rele... more Understanding ecological trajectories after mine site rehabilitation is essential to develop relevant protocols adapted for gold mining sites. This study describes the influence of a range of mine site rehabilitation and revegetation protocols on soil physicochemical parameters and microbial activities related to carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles. We sampled soil from six rehabilitated mining sites in French Guiana with different plant cover (herbaceous, Cyperaceous, monoculture of Clitoria racemosa and Acacia mangium and association of C. racemosa and A. mangium). We measured the mineralization potential of organic matter by estimating the mineralization of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus and the microbial catabolic diversity balance. The results showed an improvement in the quality of organic matter on revegetated sites with tree cover. On restored sites with fabaceous species, the microbial biomass is three times higher than non-restored sites, improving the rates of organic matter mineralization and restoring the catabolic diversity to the level of natural Guyanese soils. These results confirm that the establishment of fabaceous species under controlled conditions significantly improves the restoration of microbial communities in mining soils.
Applied sciences, Mar 3, 2021
As rehabilitation efforts in Guyana are recent, there is little information on the effect of diff... more As rehabilitation efforts in Guyana are recent, there is little information on the effect of different ecological rehabilitation protocols for Guyana's mining sites on biogeochemical cycles and mercury mobility. This study was conducted to assess the impact of different ecological restoration protocols on soil quality with the use of soil microbial indicators and by estimating the mercury mobility. We sampled soil from six rehabilitated mining sites in French Guyana with different ecological restoration procedures. We carried out measurements of enzymatic activities and an analysis of mercury environmental speciation to assess its potential toxicity according to a mobility gradient. The results obtained in this study show that the rehabilitation of mining sites has been carried out in a heterogeneous manner and soil quality is very variable, even in nearby sites. Sites that have been rehabilitated with fabaceous species have positive soil quality indicators. In addition, the results highlight a change in mercury mobility that is 82.1% correlated after co-inertia analysis with soil texture properties, which also confirms a direct effect of rehabilitation on mercury mobility. The non-restored sites had a much higher potential of mercury mobility and toxicity than the sites where ecological restoration was successful. These results highlight the positive effect of controlled rehabilitation and ecological restoration on microbiological activities and the potential toxicity of mercury.
Isolation and characterization of microsatellite markers in Labiotermes labralis (Isoptera, Termitidae, Nasutitermitinae)
Molecular Ecology Notes, Nov 9, 2006
Abstract We report here on the development of six polymorphic microsatellite loci for Labiotermes... more Abstract We report here on the development of six polymorphic microsatellite loci for Labiotermes labralis. This soil-feeding species is restricted to the Neotropical rainforest and then could represent a major candidate for being a bio-indicator of anthropic disturbance resulting in the forest fragmentation. The microsatellite loci were isolated and characterized using a microsatellite-enriched genomic library. The primers were tested on a French Guyanese population of L. labralis, represented by the sampling of one soldier in 22 nests. The primers were also tested against nine species of the same Nasutitermitinae subfamily and were successfully amplified at five loci in Armitermes minutus.
Science of The Total Environment, 2019
TWW irrigation seems to be a sustainable alternative to face water scarcity in Tunisia. • Presenc... more TWW irrigation seems to be a sustainable alternative to face water scarcity in Tunisia. • Presence of pollutants in TWW presents severe threats to earthworms Eisenia andrei. • Eisenia andrei were exposed to soils irrigated with TWW for 1, 8 and 20 years from • Several oxidative stress damages were observed through biochemical response and micronuclei formation. • Gene expression level of CAT and GST confirmed biochemical results and showed a Up-regulation after 14 days of exposure.
International Journal of Environmental Monitoring and Analysis, 2015
During the discharge of metals in the aquatic environment, metals are partitioned between the sed... more During the discharge of metals in the aquatic environment, metals are partitioned between the sediment and the water column phases. Further partitioning of metals occurs within the sediment chemical fractions. The present study focuses on one of the middle eat rivers, Al-Ghadir which is the smallest and the most polluted and found in the most populated region in Lebanon. The aim of this study was to integrate hydrochemical and sediment data-in order to evaluate the distribution pattern of the pollution of Al-Ghadir River. Bed sediments and water were collected from five locations in one dry season (Octobre 2010) and analyzed for more than 40 parameters, including (i) those of the chemical and the physico-chemical nature and (ii) those reporting the pollution caused by the heavy metals partitioned between the sediment and the water column phases by applying a sequential chemical fractionation scheme to the <75 µm sieved sediment fraction. The quality of waters for different uses has been tested and the state of sediments pollution was evaluated by comparison with general quality standards. Data showed that the highest percentages of total metal content in sediment are for: Fe and Mn in the residual and in the Fe/Mn oxides fractions, Cu in the oxidizable fraction, Cd and Zn in the carbonate and in the Fe/Mn oxides fractions, Pb and Cr in the Fe/Mn oxides fraction. Based on the geoaccumulation indices (I geo ), the river sediments are considered to be moderately polluted with the measured metals.
Aerobiologia, Apr 12, 2015
Environmental simulation chambers (atmospheric/smog chambers) are small-to large-scale facilities... more Environmental simulation chambers (atmospheric/smog chambers) are small-to large-scale facilities (with volumes ranging between a few to several hundred cubic meters), where atmospheric conditions can be monitored in real time under control to reproduce realistic environments and to study interactions among their constituents. Up to now, they have been used mainly to study chemical and photochemical processes that occur in the atmosphere, such as ozone formation and cloud chemistry, but the high versatility of these facilities allows for a wider application covering all fields of atmospheric aerosol science. The biological component of atmospheric aerosol (bioaerosol) is a relevant subject of scientific investigation requiring expertise in both atmospheric science and biology. It raises a strong interest in the scientific community due to its link with human health and the relevant role that biological particles are supposed to play in ice nuclei formation and cloud condensation. Nevertheless, the mechanisms of interaction between bioaerosols and other aerosols, the behavior of airborne microorganisms in different atmospheric conditions and the impact of bioaerosols on radiation and clouds are still poorly known and require deeper investigation. In this work, we present the results of a feasibility study of the use of an atmospheric chamber facility to study bioaerosols under differing atmospheric conditions. Here, we present the experimental setup and the protocol to inject, analyze and extract Bacillus subtilis strain in the Experimental Multiphasic Atmospheric Simulation Chamber, and we investigate the sensitivity of this tool to possible changes in bacteria viability by varying the atmospheric conditions.
Agricultural Water Management, May 1, 2020
Climate change and population growth generates a decrease in water availability around the world ... more Climate change and population growth generates a decrease in water availability around the world which can compromise the maintenance of sustainable agriculture. Thus, treated wastewater (TWW) became an alternative to minimize water shortage. However, this may indirectly affect the soil's microbial properties. In this study different soils irrigated for 0, 1, 8 and 20 years with TWW were sampled and from the east central region of Tunisia. The objective was to investigate its effect on heavy metal accumulation and enzyme activities of βglucosidase, arylsulfatase, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, urease, dehydrogenase and fluorescein diacetate (FDA). Moreover, carbon microbial biomass (C mic ) using Substrate induced respiration (SIR) technique and microbial functional diversity using Biolog EcoPlate™ were assessed. Our results had shown a crucial decrease of the enzymatic activities in soils that were newly irrigated with TWW, while a crucial increase was recorded in soils exposed to TWW for 20 years. In addition, chemical analysis revealed an important accumulation of heavy metals such as Cd, Cu, Zn and Ni along with the irrigation period, especially in 20 years-irrigated soils with TWW. The assessment of the bacterial functional diversity showed an important change in Average well color development (AWCD) and in diversity index values. Besides, substrate utilization profile revealed a significant variation along with the irrigation periods. In conclusion, long-term TWW irrigation has increased the metabolic activities of the soil's microorganisms. Meanwhile, traces elements accumulation could pose a serious threat for biological processes in soils and a limiting factor for the reuse of TWW in agriculture.
Biochar amendment alleviates heavy metal phytotoxicity of Medicago sativa grown in polymetallic contaminated soil: Evaluation of metal uptake, plant response and soil properties
Plant Stress
RSC Advances, 2023
This study is based on the evaluation of the adsorption process using Corbula trigona shell powde... more This study is based on the evaluation of the adsorption process using Corbula trigona shell powder to remove lead from aqueous solution in a batch mode. Different analytical techniques, including X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and EDS-coupled scanning electron microscopy, were used to characterize the shell powder before and after lead treatment. Regarding the pollutant removal, a Plackett-Burman design (PBD) was first used to determine the influencing factors from the following experimental domain: solution pH (3-9), adsorbent mass (0.1-0.5 g), contact time (40 -240 min), initial pollutant concentration (10 -60 mg L -1 ), and adsorbent size (100 -200 mm). The respective contributions of the various factors listed above are 31.7%, 30.51%, 25.17%, 12.44%, and 0.18%. As a result, solution pH, adsorbent mass, contact time, and initial pollutant concentration were selected to optimize the lead removal process using the composite central plan. The optimal lead removal conditions were 99.028% by setting the solution pH to 4.5, initial lead concentration to 47 mg L -1 , contact time to 125 min, and adsorbent mass to 0.2 g. In addition, it was found that the composite central plan could be a reliable statistical tool to model and determine the optimal conditions.
Soil Contamination - Threats and Sustainable Solutions
Urbanization and industrialization are the main causes of increasing contaminated soils in cities... more Urbanization and industrialization are the main causes of increasing contaminated soils in cities all around the world. This leads to numerous abandoned lands, reduction in biodiversity, and thereby posing a serious health risk for urban inhabitants. The development of effective and ecological remediation approaches is necessary. Phytoremediation is well known as an ecological solution with good acceptation for remediation of contaminated soils. Since, urban soils are particularly characterized by their highly disturbed, heterogeneous and low fertility, the application of phytoremediation to rehabilitate contaminated soils in urban areas is until now very limited at the laboratory scale and even less at the field scale. In this context, we have to take into account all these parameters and precautions when it’s application. The main objective of this chapter is to discuss how to take phytoremediation approaches from a proven technology to an accepted practice in an urban context. An...
Assessing the effects of nickel on, e.g., Medicago sativa L. nodules using multidisciplinary approach
Environmental Science and Pollution Research
Molecules, 2022
Understanding ecological trajectories after mine site rehabilitation is essential to develop rele... more Understanding ecological trajectories after mine site rehabilitation is essential to develop relevant protocols adapted for gold mining sites. This study describes the influence of a range of mine site rehabilitation and revegetation protocols on soil physicochemical parameters and microbial activities related to carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles. We sampled soil from six rehabilitated mining sites in French Guiana with different plant cover (herbaceous, Cyperaceous, monoculture of Clitoria racemosa and Acacia mangium and association of C. racemosa and A. mangium). We measured the mineralization potential of organic matter by estimating the mineralization of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus and the microbial catabolic diversity balance. The results showed an improvement in the quality of organic matter on revegetated sites with tree cover. On restored sites with fabaceous species, the microbial biomass is three times higher than non-restored sites, improving the rates of organic...
Short Term Treated Wastewater Reuse Impact on Soil Microbial Biomass, Bacterial Functional Diversity and Enzymatic Activities in the Presence of Earthworms Eisenia andrei
Tunisia, being arid to semi-arid country, is facing water shortage of increasing severity. Water ... more Tunisia, being arid to semi-arid country, is facing water shortage of increasing severity. Water scarcity problems are expected to intensify as a result of population growth, rising living standards and accelerated urbanisation.
Evaluation of trace metal accumulation in six vegetable crops intercropped with phytostabilizing plant species, in a French urban wasteland
Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2021
The extensive development of agriculture in urban and peri-urban wastelands polluted with several... more The extensive development of agriculture in urban and peri-urban wastelands polluted with several trace elements (TE) poses risks to human health through contaminated food products. The objective was to explore the accumulation of TE in the various parts of vegetable crop plants (tomato, French bean, radish, potato, spinach, and leek) intercropped with phytostabilizing plant species (ryegrass and white clover, respectively). Field studies were conducted in a multicontaminated French urban wasteland with Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn, and an alkaline soil pH. Analyses of the respective non-edible parts of monocultured vegetable crops showed accumulation of all TE, mostly Zn, then Pb and Cu, and finally Cd. The corresponding TE accumulation factors (soil to plant) were all below 0.25. In the edible parts, average concentrations for TE were above the limit values, according to European and Chinese standards. TE contents in the phytostabilizing species chosen were in the same orders of magnitude and the same ranking as described for vegetable crops and most accumulation was in the roots. Unexpectedly, the presence of the phytostabilizing plants had a very strong positive impact on the soil to plant accumulation factor. Moreover, the edible plant parts were poorly impacted by the co-cropping with phytostabilizing plants.
Microorganisms, 2021
Successive years of gold mining in French Guiana has resulted in soil degradation and deforestati... more Successive years of gold mining in French Guiana has resulted in soil degradation and deforestation leading to the pollution and erosion of mining plots. Due to erosion and topography, gold panning sites are submitted to hydromorphy during rainfall and groundwater increases. This original study focused on characterizing the impact of hydromorphic anaerobic periods on bio-geochemical cycles. We sampled soil from five rehabilitated sites in French Guiana, including sites with herbaceous vegetation and sites restored with fabaceous plants, Clitoria racemosa (Cli) mon-oculture, Acacia mangium (Aca) monoculture, Clitoria racemosa and Acacia mangium (Mix) bi-culture. We conducted mesocosm experiments where soil samples were incubated in anaerobic conditions for 35 days. To evaluate the effect of anaerobic conditions on biogeochemical cycles, we measured the following parameters related to iron-reducing bacteria and sulfate-reducing bacteria metabolism throughout the experiment: CO2 releas...
Soil and Sediment Contamination: An International Journal, 2020
Anthropic activities and agricultural practices have increased the rate of pollutants in ecosyste... more Anthropic activities and agricultural practices have increased the rate of pollutants in ecosystems. Consequently, this can alter soil chemical properties, biological functioning, and fertility. Our work aimed to evaluate the impact of nickel (Ni) contamination on rhizospheric soil's physico-chemical properties and microbiological activities in the presence of alfalfa plants. For this purpose, five concentrations of Ni (0, 50, 150, 250, and 500 mg.kg -1 ) were applied to Tunisian agricultural soils cultured with Medicago sativa. At the end of the experiment, the physico-chemical properties of these soils and the Ni uptake by alfalfa plants were analyzed. Additionally, soil enzyme activities were assessed. Finally, the microbial biomass and functional diversity of microbial communities were determined using SIR (Substrateinduced respiration) and Biolog Ecoplates™ techniques, respectively. The results revealed that Ni accumulation was dose-dependent, with a significant amount of Ni being translocated from the roots to the shoots. With respect to the physico-chemical properties of soil, the most important Ni concentration led to the lowest organic matter content and cation-exchange capacity (CEC). Our data also showed a decrease in soil enzyme activities following Ni contamination. However, a crucial increase on microbial biomass of soils was revealed with the high Ni contamination. Moreover, the microbial functional diversity index and substrate utilization pattern were observed to increase in soils exposed to the most potent Ni concentrations. Our data provided evidence regarding the apparent toxicity of Ni and the fact that enzymatic activities and microbial biomass could be exploited as Ni-stress bioindicators.
Agricultural Water Management, 2020
Climate change and population growth generates a decrease in water availability around the world ... more Climate change and population growth generates a decrease in water availability around the world which can compromise the maintenance of sustainable agriculture. Thus, treated wastewater (TWW) became an alternative to minimize water shortage. However, this may indirectly affect the soil's microbial properties. In this study different soils irrigated for 0, 1, 8 and 20 years with TWW were sampled and from the east central region of Tunisia. The objective was to investigate its effect on heavy metal accumulation and enzyme activities of βglucosidase, arylsulfatase, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase, urease, dehydrogenase and fluorescein diacetate (FDA). Moreover, carbon microbial biomass (C mic ) using Substrate induced respiration (SIR) technique and microbial functional diversity using Biolog EcoPlate™ were assessed. Our results had shown a crucial decrease of the enzymatic activities in soils that were newly irrigated with TWW, while a crucial increase was recorded in soils exposed to TWW for 20 years. In addition, chemical analysis revealed an important accumulation of heavy metals such as Cd, Cu, Zn and Ni along with the irrigation period, especially in 20 years-irrigated soils with TWW. The assessment of the bacterial functional diversity showed an important change in Average well color development (AWCD) and in diversity index values. Besides, substrate utilization profile revealed a significant variation along with the irrigation periods. In conclusion, long-term TWW irrigation has increased the metabolic activities of the soil's microorganisms. Meanwhile, traces elements accumulation could pose a serious threat for biological processes in soils and a limiting factor for the reuse of TWW in agriculture.
Journal of Soils and Sediments, 2018
Purpose A better understanding is required of the potential of soil biota in controlling the avai... more Purpose A better understanding is required of the potential of soil biota in controlling the availability and mobility of heavy metals and ascertaining their toxicity. The objectives of this work are to assess, first, the modification of heavy metal speciation induced by earthworms Eisenia andrei and, second, the consequence of this metal speciation change on soil enzyme activities as an easy bioindicator of stress. Materials and methods The experiment was conducted on six sites from Jebel Ressas Mines, which are characterized by a gradient heavy metal contamination (Pb, Zn, and Cd). Earthworms E. andrei were introduced in these six soils for 60 days. We had performed heavy metal speciation both in the presence and absence of worms. Modifications of activities of seven enzymes implicated in C, N, and P biochemical cycles were used as a bioindicator of metal stress. We had used the co-inertia statistical method to evaluate the correlation between change in heavy metal speciation induced by earthworms and the enzyme activities in soils. Our results suggested that earthworms modified the heavy metal dynamic and speciation. They decrease the amount of metal associated with the most available fraction, such as exchangeable one, and increase the amount of metal bound to the more stable fraction, like Mn and Fe oxide ones. On the same hand, enzyme activities increased in majority of the soils, following earthworm activity, but this effect is dependent on the amount of soil contamination. Moreover, the co-inertia results denote that change in heavy metal speciation significantly influences the soil enzyme activities in Jebel Ressas soils, especially β-glucosidase, urease, deshydrogenase, and fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis (FDA), and can be considered as bioindicators of metal toxicity and biological quality in the contaminated area. Conclusions By reducing the availability of heavy metals, the earthworms are useful in the bioremediation of heavy metal contaminated soils. Soil enzymes βglucosidase, urease, deshydrogenase, and FDA can be used to assess the changes in metal speciation and can let us, therefore, predict if the soils are bioremediated.
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Papers by Noureddine Bousserrhine