Penicillium spp. XK10, Fungi with Potential to Repair Cadmium and Antimony Pollution.

Soil heavy-metal pollution is one of the most important environmental problems in the world, and seriously endangers plant growth and human health. Microbial remediation has become a key technology in the field of soil heavy-metal remediation due to its advantages of being harmless, green and environmental. In this study, a fungus Penicillium spp. XK10 with high tolerance to cadmium (Cd) and antimony (Sb) was screened from mine slag, and its adsorption characteristics to heavy metals under different environmental conditions were studied. The results showed that at pH₀ = 6, C₀ (Cd) = 0.1 mM, and the adsorption time was 4 days, the maximum removal rate of cadmium by XK10 was 32.2%. Under the conditions of pH₀ = 4, T = 7d, and the initial antimony concentration of 1 mM, the removal rate of antimony by XK10 was the highest, which was 15.5%. This study provides potential microbial materials for bioremediation of heavy metal-contaminated soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]