Acinetobacter as Model Organism: Environmental and Biotechnological Applications

Abstract

Among different microbial groups present in nature, Acinetobacter holds an important place because of its profuse presence in varied environments like freshwater, soil, solid wastes and wastewater. Versatile metabolic characteristics of different species of genus Acinetobacter have been fascinating emergent interest in different fields of environmental, medical, and biotechnological perspective. Various members of this genus are recognized to be involved in biodegradation, treatment and removal of various inorganic and organic hazardous wastes. Some Acinetobacter strains are also well-characterized to produce industrially valuable bioproducts. Because of its ecological importance, genus Acinetobacter also considered as model organism for environmental and industrial microbiological studies. This review recapitulates the practicality and various applications of Acinetobacter strains in the environmental and in the field  of biotechnology. 

Key words: Acinetobacter, biodegradation, bioemulsans, Biosurfactant,  polysaccharides.