Bioremediation of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT)-contaminated agricultural soils. Potential of two autochthonous saprotrophic fungal strains
DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) was used worldwide as an organochlorine insecticide to control agricultural pests and vectors of several insectborne human diseases. It was banned in most industrialized countries; however, due to its persistence in the environment, DDT residues remain in environmental compartments, becoming long-term sources of exposure. To identify and select fungal species suitable for bioremediation of DDT-contaminated sites, soil samples were collected from DDT-contaminated agricultural soils in Poland, and 38 fungal taxa among 18 genera were isolated.