Extracellular polymeric substances enhance dissolution and microbial methylation of mercury sulfide minerals

Autor:	Zhanhua Zhang, Zhenyu Zhao, Qingxuan Fang, Ruohong Qiao, Tong Zhang
Rok vydání:	2023
Předmět:	Public Health Environmental and Occupational Health Environmental Chemistry General Medicine Management Monitoring Policy and Law
Zdroj:	Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts. 25:44-55
ISSN:	2050-7895 2050-7887
DOI:	10.1039/d2em00394e
Popis:	Due to the extremely low solubility, mercury sulfide minerals, as the major environmental mercury sinks, are generally considered to be inert mercury species with minimal bioavailability. Here, we demonstrate that extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), continuously secreted and released by anaerobic methylating bacteria, enhance the dissolution processes of cinnabar (α-HgS) minerals. The enhancing effects of EPS occur to a greater extent in the dissolution of nanoparticulate α-HgS compared to the bulk-scale counterpart. The released EPS-Hg(II) species are available for microbial methylation to produce bioaccumulative neurotoxin, methylmercury. This is probably due to the abundant aromatic proteins in EPS that strongly interact with surface Hg(II)
Databáze:	OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz:	https://explore.openaire.eu/search/publication?articleId=doi_dedup___::9987489cbb9e04466b4a52741a04f58f https://doi.org/10.1039/d2em00394e Zobrazit plný text záznamu