Estuary bacterium turns toxic selenium waste into harmless particles
Zhou J, Sang C, Liu Z, Li W, Sun Y
Phytoremediation
If you've ever worried about selenium runoff from farm fields or mining sites reaching local wetlands, this bacterium offers a low-tech cleanup tool that thrives in exactly the messy, variable conditions real wastewater comes in.
Selenium sounds like a helpful trace mineral, but too much of it in water is toxic to fish, birds, and plants. Researchers discovered a bacterium living in muddy estuary sediment that eats up the toxic form of selenium and converts it into tiny solid particles that are much safer, and it keeps working even when the water is salty, hot, or has shifted pH. That toughness makes it a promising candidate for treating selenium-polluted water from farms, mines, or industrial sites.
Key Findings
Strain P10 fully converted 5 mM selenite into selenium nanoparticles within 48 hours and still showed activity at concentrations up to 1,000 mM.
The bacterium remained effective across pH 5-10, temperatures of 20-45°C, and salinity from 1% to 3.5%, and performed reliably over five repeated treatment cycles.
Transcriptomic analysis linked nitrite reductase activity and shifts in carbohydrate, energy, and nitrogen metabolism to the selenite reduction process.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists found a tough soil bacterium that can turn toxic selenite pollution into solid selenium nanoparticles, working fast even in salty, hot, or acidic water. This could lead to cheaper, hardier ways to clean up selenium-contaminated wastewater from mining and agriculture.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Bioconversion of selenite to selenium nanoparticles by Paenibacillus polymyxa P10: metabolic basis and potential for wastewater treatment.
Sustainable bioprocesses for selenite [Se(IV)] remediation and selenium (Se) recovery are constrained by the limited tolerance of most reported microorganisms for elevated Se(IV) concentrations. He...
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