Environmental Biochemistry

Biodegradation and microbial transformation reactions are the most important processes determining environmental fate and ultimate elimination of environmental pollutants. The environmental biochemistry is concerned in studying microbial metabolism of pollutants with emphasis on elucidation of metabolites and critical metabolic reactions. On a molecular level, enzymes catalyzing key steps in the metabolism of pollutants with regard to genetic, kinetic, and structural criteria are analyzed. It will help environmental chemists to develop strategies, tools, and methods for improvement and advancement of drinking water and waste water purification technologies, bioremediation processes, construction and selection of bacteria with specific physiological characteristics, and environmentally friendly industrial production processes for chemicals. Environmental toxicology studies on dose-response relationships of heavy metals requires experiments on laboratory animals exposed to “low doses” of trace elements which should reflect “present or actual environmental levels” characteristic of polluted environments. Today daily intakes of trace elements by man are of the order of few micrograms or nanograms thus requiring the use of extremely sensitive analytical techniques to determine the very low amounts of heavy metals in tissues and cellular components. Environmental chemists draw on a range of concepts from chemistry and various environmental sciences to assist in their study of what is happening to a chemical species in the environment. Important general concepts from chemistry include understanding chemical reactions and equations, solutions, units, sampling, and analytical techniques.