Metal pollution of the environment, especially at elevated concentrations, is known to adversely affect microbial activities. However, microorganisms are a versatile group, as they can adapt and grow under various extreme conditions including high metal concentrations. The aim of this study was the screening and characterization of Fe2+ and Cu2+ tolerating fungal isolates. For this study 13 fungal isolates were isolated from dust sample collected from TISCO(Tata Iron and Steel Company, Jamshedpur) and screened for their capacity to tolerate different concentration of Cu2+ and Fe2+ On the basis of their cultural and morphological study, it is said that the isolates may belong to the genus of Aspergillus spp, Cladosporium spp, Periconia spp., Lacellina spp.,Sadasibania girisa and Aspergillus niger. Among the isolated fungal isolates, Aspergillus niger was the most tolerant to Fe2+ (150 ppm) and Periconia spp.tolerant to Cu2+(75) ppm).The effect of metals on fungal growth was determined together with their ability to grow in different pH and temperature. The fungal isolates grew well between pH 4.0 to 6.0 and temperature between 20 to 30ºC.This study was conducted with an aim to obtain metal tolerant fungi with metal removal ability which could be utilized as a potential tool for detoxification of the polluted sites.
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