Concise review on bacterial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons: Emphasis on Indian marine environment

Petroleum crude oil is cleared from marine environment at the site of oil spill by various physical, chemical and biological methods. Oil spills and released petroleum hydrocarbons have been treated by bioremediation in various countries and have proven to be successful. Even though there have been over 30 major and minor oil spills in India, with 12 spills involving petroleum crude oil, bioremediation for cleanup has never been employed in the Indian marine environment on a large scale. Considerable quantities of petroleum hydrocarbon have been measured in the Indian sea coast along with its bioaccumulation in marine life forms. The present review details on the characteristics of petroleum crude oil, its pollution in Indian marine environment with effects on marine life and human health, degradation by bacteria with assistance from biosurfactants along with application of response surface methodology in bacterial oil spill remediation.