Dear Colleagues,

Although pharmaceuticals (especially antibiotics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), pesticides, petroleum, and other organic compounds have human benefits, their widespread and continuous use is a major problem as they pollute soils and affect non-target organisms. Since the abovementioned compounds may not degrade immediately after introduction into soil and because their large residues are detected in this environment, there is an urgent need to remediate polluted soils. Various remediation technologies have been developed for this purpose; however, bioremediation, which involves bioaugmentation and/or biostimulation and is a cost-effective and eco-friendly approach, has emerged as the most advantageous method for cleaning up contaminated soils.

In this context, this Special Issue of Toxics welcomes researchers all over the world to contribute with original articles and reviews addressing the latest knowledge about bioremediation of soil contaminated with organic pollutants. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Levels of soil contamination with pharmaceuticals, pesticides, petroleum, and other organic compounds;
• Impact of organic contaminants on soil microorganisms and processes;
• Degradation potential of indigenous soil microorganisms in relation to organic pollutants;
• Existing and new strategies for bioremediation of contaminated soils;
• Screening of soil microorganisms degrading organic contaminants;
• Bioremediation of contaminated soils by inoculating of specific microorganisms;
• Fate and activity of microorganisms involved in the degradation of contaminants;
• Ecological behavior of degrading microorganisms;
• Specific markers, methods, and molecular tools for monitoring the effectiveness of soil bioremediation, as well as the survival dynamics and the interaction of degrading microorganisms with indigenous microorganisms.

Dr. Mariusz Cycoń
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• organic compound
• soil contamination
• bioremediation technologies
• screening of organic pollutant-degrading microorganisms
• microbial activity
• bioaugmentation
• behavior of inoculated microorganisms
• factors affecting bioremediation