ENZYME ANALYSIS AND HISTOLOGICAL STUDIES OF EARTHWORMS IN THE TREATMENT OF DIFFERENT ORGANIC WASTESG. Priya, Vimala Bangarusamy, Nasreen Najeeb and P. MahalakshmiAbstract The study aims at the deleterious effect of the pollutants on the earthworm especially the gut epithelium cells. The study also focuses the levels of various enzymes and their activities. The two earthworms species namely Eudrillus eugeniae and Eisenia fetida were selected for our study. The enzyme activity and histopathological effect of the industrial waste, agricultural and domestic wastes to the earthworm species Eudrillus eugeniae and Eisenia fetida were studied under laboratory conditions. Earthworm species were exposed to different organic waste (Vegetables and fruits peels, Coffee grounds, Newspaper, Textile dye waste, Endosulfan) for 40 days and the mortality was recorded every 10 days. In addition, one sections of the worm were made after 96 hours for microscopic examination. The overall maximum enzyme activity was observed in a Eisenia fetida are compared to Eudrilus eugeniae. Result showed that the vermicompost quality was improved in enzyme activity. The histopathological manifestations that textile dye waste and endosulfan waste gradually increase damages of tissue. The soft peritoneal membrane lining intestinal epithelium is more affected. It was concluded that composting of organic waste by vermicomposting promote humification, increased microbial activity and enzyme production, which in turn increases the aggregate stability of soil particles resulting in better aeration with pollution free technique. The result of the study showed that both mortality and histopathology data could be used in environmental risk assessment of textile dye waste and endosulfan. |