Biodegradation of Aliphatic Hydrocarbons by Seven Marine Bacterial Species Isolated from Iraqi Coastal Sediments: A Comparative Study

Reham M jasseim

Authors

jasseim et al., 2026 Department of Natural Marine Sciences, College of Marine science,University of Basrah

Keywords:

Biodegradation, aliphatic hydrocarbons, marine bacteria, Iraqi coastal sediments, Arabian Gulf, n-alkanes, bioremediation.

Abstract

Oil pollution in the marine environment of the Arabian Gulf is an emerging threat, especially for the Iraqi coast. This study aims to evaluate the biodegradation potential of seven bacterial strains isolated from Iraqi coastal sediments for degrading aliphatic hydrocarbons (n-alkanes). The bacterial strains tested include Sphingomonas paucimobilis, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Kocuria rosea, Kocuria kristinae, Kocuria rhizophila, Staphylococcus lentus, and Pasteurella canis. Degradation efficiencies were analyzed after 48 hours, 72 hours, and 15 days. Pseudomonas fluorescens was the most efficient bacterium in terms of aliphatic hydrocarbon biodegradation (98.9% after 15 days), followed by Sphingomonas paucimobilis (96.8%) and Kocuria rhizophila (97.3%). Moreover, the results indicated that the medium-chain alkane (C14-C25) was preferentially degraded incubation time for the long-chain alkane (C26-C40). A comparative analysis of the results obtained in this study was conducted with other studies conducted in the northwestern Arabian Gulf area, including Iran and Kuwait.

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