Screening of Natural Rubber Degradation by Fungi; Aspergillus and Phlebia Sp. and Bacteria Pseudomonas and Streptomyces sp.

Rubber products are being used worldwide in our day to day life these products are mainly made up of natural rubber (NR). The NR is a biopolymer made of poly (cis-1, 4-isoprene) units obtained from the latex (sap) of rubber tree known as Hevea brasiliensis. From ages, mankind has produced millions of tons of natural rubber derived products. The different products are manufactured by vulcanization of natural rubber and the use of these NR products has been increased drastically. During the manufacturing process, other chemical additives like sulphur are added along with the vulcanized rubber. After using these products, their disposal is the solid waste problem which gets accumulated and thereby degrading the environment and thus deteriorating the living conditions of the biosphere. The microbial degradation is the potential alternative method and is preferred over other methods of degradation. The biodegradation is a slow process but is economic and environment-friendly. The present study investigated the NR degrading capacity of the fungi; Aspergillus niger and Phlebia radiata and bacteria; Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptomyces coliecolor.