Degradation of oil by fungi isolated from Gulf of Mexico beaches

Fungi of the Ascomycota phylum were isolated from oil-soaked sand patties collected from beaches following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. To examine their ability to degrade oil, fungal isolates were grown on oiled quartz at 20 °C, 30 °C and 40 °C. Consistent trends in oil degradation were not related to fungal species or temperature and all isolates degraded variable quantities of oil (32-65%). Fungal isolates preferentially degraded short (< C18; 90-99%) as opposed to long (C19-C36; 7-87%) chain n-alkanes and straight chain C17- and C18-n-alkanes (91-99%) compared to their branched counterparts, pristane and phytane (70-98%). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds were also degraded by the fungal isolates (42-84% total degraded), with a preference for low molecular weight over high molecular weight PAHs. Overall, these findings contribute to our understanding of the capacity of fungi to degrade oil in the coastal marine environment.