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Review of techniques for the in-situ sterilization of soil contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores or other pathogens
Citation:
Wood, J. Review of techniques for the in-situ sterilization of soil contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores or other pathogens. Research in Microbiology. ELSEVIER, AMSTERDAM, Holland, 175(4):104175, (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resmic.2023.104175
Impact/Purpose:
This review of the open scientific literature on methods to sterilize or decontaminate large amounts of soil in-situ may be useful to officials needing to make decisions about how to remediate large amounts soil contaminated with microbiological contaminants. This review may be particularly useful when soil will need to be sterilized, i.e., when bacterial spores such as those causing anthrax disease (Bacillus anthracis) are present and need to be effectively inactivated. This review also identifies gaps in the scientific literature that may inform future research.
Description:
This review summarizes the literature on efficacy of techniques to sterilize soil. Soil may need to be sterilized if contaminated with pathogens such as Bacillus anthracis. Sterilizing soil in-situ minimizes spread of the bio-contaminant. Soil is difficult to sterilize, with efficacy generally diminishing with depth. Methyl bromide, formaldehyde, and glutaraldehyde are the only soil treatment options that have been demonstrated at full-scale to effectively inactivate Bacillus spores. Soil sterilization modalities with high efficacy at bench-scale include wet and dry heat, metam sodium, chlorine dioxide gas, and activated sodium persulfate. Simple oxidants such as chlorine bleach are ineffective in sterilizing soil.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Review of techniques for the in-situ sterilization of soil contaminated with Bacillus anthracis spores or other pathogens