POTENTIAL APPLICATION OF ACTINOMYCES IN TREATMENT OF STARCH-RICH WASTEWATER

Abstract

Actinomyces is a group of bacteria that can produce many bioactive compounds and has been used in many different fields. In this study, 20 actinomycetes strains were isolated and 10 actinomycetes strains producing extracellular amylase were selected. Preliminary identification of the actinomycetes strains by analysis of 16S rDNA gene sequences showed that two strains of VTXK10 and VTXK11 display high homology to Amycolaptosis sp., while RBXK3 has high similarity with Streptomyces canus. The treatment of starch-rich wastewater with actinomycetes mixture showed significant reduction of BOD₅ by 61.6-65.1%, COD by 48.7-53.8%, relative starch content by 31.1-38.4%, and resulted in balancing the pH value of wastewater in neutral range. The effect of treated wastewater on development of green beans was found to be similar to the control distilled water. This study has shown the potential application of actinomyces in treatment of starch-rich wastewater, contributing to sustainable environmental protection.