Analysis of the Biodegradative Microbial Population and their Genes in Deepwater Horizon Oil Contaminated Water and Sediments of Coastal Alabama
Implementing Organization
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Overview
DWH Project Funding
$190,900
Known Leveraged Funding
$0
Funding Organization
Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI)
Funding Program
Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative GoMRI Grant Program
Details
Project Category
Science
Project Actions
Environmental Research
Targeted Resources
Human and/or Institutional Capacity
Project Description
The objective of this research is to determine the changes of the microbial community composition in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) coastal sediments when exposed to Macondo MC252 crude oil. Due to the low level of natural seafloor seepage of crude oil, indigenous biodegradative microorganisms in the GoM have evolved to metabolize almost all components of crude oil, ranging from simple aliphatic hydrocarbons to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
Contact
Asim Bej205-934-9857
abej@uab.edu
Project Website
Project Partners
None
Affiliated Institutions
None