Soil bacteria fed sulfur can lock away toxic antimony from mining sites
Jiang J, Liu R, Shen Y, Yin Z, Li Y
Phytoremediation
Antimony from mining runoff and industrial pollution quietly accumulates in garden soils, where it moves into water and plant roots, and this research points toward a microbial fix that could keep it locked in place without chemical treatments.
Antimony is a toxic metal that can sneak into soil and water near old mines or industrial sites, and it's notoriously hard to keep contained because wet and dry cycles keep releasing it back. Scientists found that certain soil bacteria, when given a sulfur compound to eat, can transform antimony into a solid, stable form that stays put. The bacteria essentially use the sulfur as fuel to do the conversion, and within two weeks the antimony was completely locked away.
Key Findings
Thiosulfate amendment achieved complete immobilization of antimony(V) within 14 days under anoxic conditions, converting it to stable Sb2O3 precipitates.
Key bacteria including Ramlibacter and Thiomonas carry both antimony-reducing genes (arrA) and sulfur oxidation pathways, coupling sulfur metabolism directly to antimony detoxification.
Antimony was re-released under oxic conditions without thiosulfate, but thiosulfate addition significantly suppressed this release even through oxic-anoxic-oxic cycling.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Researchers discovered that adding thiosulfate, a sulfur compound, to contaminated soil allows bacteria to lock away antimony, a toxic heavy metal, preventing it from leaching back into the environment even when oxygen levels fluctuate.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Mechanistic insights into antimony immobilization by sulfur-metabolizing microorganisms under alternating oxic-anoxic conditions.
Antimony (Sb), as a toxic heavy metal(loid) element, poses potential risks to the environment and human health. The migration and transformation of Sb in the environment are closely linked to the m...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Was this useful?
Want to tell us more? (optional)
Thanks for the note!
Something went wrong — please try again.
Too many submissions. Try again in an hour.
Ancient DNA Reveals Pre-Columbian Amazonian Forest Management at Scale
Forests and fruits we romanticize as wild — including many plants now in our kitchens and gardens — may exist in their current abundance precisely because an...
Soil health is the capacity of soil to function as a living ecosystem, supporting complex interactions between microorganisms, soil fauna, and plant communities. For plant science, soil health is critical because these biological and chemical soil properties directly control nutrient availability,
arrow_forward Explore topic