Wastewater Treatment

Microbial bioremediation has become an interesting and sustainable technique for dealing with pollution of the environment through microbial degradation, transformation, immobilization, and recovery of contaminants. This review looks into recent developments of microbial bioremediation with focus on pollutants such as wastewater, pharmaceuticals and antibiotics, heavy metals, petroleum hydrocarbons, plastics, microplastics and other emerging pollutants. Mechanisms employed by microbes include biodegradation, biosorption, bioaccumulation and biotransformation together with advancements in the use of bioaugmentation, microbial consortia, microbial electrochemical systems, omics technology, and genetically modified microbes. The reviewed research shows that microbial technologies have the potential of providing efficient pollutant management as well as resource recovery in the form of biogas, microbial biomass, biopolymers, nutrients and metals, thus making circular economy possible. However, some limitations like slow degradation rate, incomplete mineralization, formation of toxic metabolites, instability of the microbes, antibiotic resistance, lack of field studies, scalability issues and biosafety concerns are evident. Future studies should focus on long-term field investigations, realistic environmental matrix, understanding of microbial community dynamics, transformation product identification and use of advanced biotechnology, life cycle assessment and process engineering. In general, microbial bioremediation holds great promise towards sustainable future but development of efficient, safe, scalable, resource recovery and human relevant technologies is crucial.

Gorlin-Goltz syndrome (GGS) is a hereditary cancer syndrome with dominant inheritance caused by mutations in the PTCH1 gene, responsible for encoding a transmembrane receptor that interacts with the SHH signaling protein. This Hedgehog signaling pathway is essential for cell division and growth, for controlling the development of vertebrates' organs, for differentiating fingers, and for the formation of the brain, spinal cord, eyes, and teeth. When the PTCH gene is homozygously inactivated, cancerogenesis ensues, resulting in the development of numerous basal cell carcinomas and other neoplasms. Other than major anomalies such as multiple basal cell carcinomas, odontogenic keratocysts of the jaw, multiple palmar or plantar pits, bilamellar calcifications of falx cerebri and tentorium, Bifid or fused, or markedly splayed ribs, more than 100 minor anomalies have been described so far. Radiological investigations and genetic testing plays a major role in early diagnosis of this syndrome. We have presented a 19-year-old male patient who presented with multiple odontogenic keratocyst and eventually diagnosed to be GGS. we have also summarized GGS anomalies recorded so far along with differential diagnosis.