Method for detecting heavy metal pollutants using a fluorescent material from bacillus endophyticus and method for making
AssigneeImam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University
InventorsMahmoud Mohamed BEREKAA, Mohamed Farouk EZZELDIN
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Abstract
A method for detecting heavy metals using a fluorescent material produced from Bacillus endophyticus such as strain DS43 which is a wild-type or natural isolate from soil in Dammam City, Saudi Arabia. The fluorescent material exhibits fluorescence under UV irradiation at a wavelength of approximately 365 nm which disappears after exposure to heavy metals. A method for culturing Bacillus endophyticus producing the fluorescent material and to methods for extracting this material for use in detecting heavy metals.
Claims20
A method for detecting a heavy metal comprising:
- contacting a sample with Bacillus endophyticus or with a fluorescent material isolated from Bacillus endophyticus to form a mixture,
- irradiating the mixture with ultraviolet or visible light, and
- identifying the presence of the heavy metal based on a sample fluorescence of the mixture by comparing the sample fluorescence with a control fluorescence from a control sample not containing the heavy metal;
- wherein the sample fluorescence and the control fluorescence are from the Bacillus endophyticus or the fluorescent material isolated from Bacillus endophyticus;
- wherein said Bacillus endophyticus has 16s rDNA that is at least 97% identical to that of Bacillus endophyticus DS43.
An optical biosensor for detecting a target heavy metal in a sample, the biosensor comprising:
- a fluorescent material,
- a source of ultraviolet or visible light, and
- a detector of fluorescence at a wavelength ranging from 360 to 370 nm;
- wherein the fluorescent material comprises Bacillus endophyticus or a fluorescent material produced by Bacillus endophyticus.
A method for producing Bacillus endophyticus that contains a material that when irradiated with ultraviolet light fluoresces at 360 to 370 nm, comprising:
- culturing Bacillus endophyticus at a pH ranging from pH 6.0 to 8.0, at a temperature ranging from 10 to 45° C., and in a medium lacking heavy metals;
- exposing a sample of the culture Bacillus endophyticus to ultraviolet light or visible light and measuring an intensity of fluorescence at 360 to 370 nm, and
- harvesting the Bacillus endophyticus when a predetermined degree of fluorescence at 360 to 370 nm is obtained.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.