Microorganisms in the Monitoring of Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecosystems: Applications, Challenges, and Future Prospects

Environmental pollution from diverse causes is currently regarded as one of the most severe issues worldwide. Specific biological indicators can detect various contaminants, enabling the identification of individual or groups of pollutants. Various technological tools are necessary for the detection and remediation of pollutants. Microbial indicators are living microorganisms that are utilised to identify pollution in a certain habitat. Their research focuses on examining the duration or residency period of contaminants by incorporating information from previous, present, and future ecosystem conditions. They possess qualities of being helpful, objective, straightforward, relevant across different scales, and capable of being reproduced. The microbiological indicators encompass bacteria, fungi, algae, and lichens. Commonly, naturally occurring biological indicators are frequently employed to evaluate a certain environment by identifying both favourable and unfavourable alterations within it. This chapter examines terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, as well as the use of microbial indicators to assess their health. It explores the various applications of microorganisms in biomonitoring, starting with traditional toxicity bioassays based on physiological responses. It then progresses to genotoxicity assays, immunoassays, and endocrine disruptor assays. Finally, it concludes by discussing emerging approaches such as toxicogenomics.