Effect of red clover on the microbial transformation of phenanthrene and octadecane in the soil

Abstract

The influence of red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) plants on the decomposition of phenanthrene and octadecane in the soil has been studied. Effect of plant root mass on the abundance of hydrocarbondegrading bacteria, the composition of their communities, and the degradation of hydrocarbons in the soil has been revealed. Changes in the taxonomic composition of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria under the effect of red clover are characterized by an increase in the abundance of species from the genera Acinetobacter, Kaistia, Novosphingobium, Pseudomonas, and Xanthomonas. A positive effect of the studied microbial–plant association on the degradation of octadecane and especially phenanthrene in the soil has been revealed.