Advances in arsenic-resistant mechanism of Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria and its arsenic pollution remediation applications

Abstract:

As a global environmental issue, arsenic pollution has attracted great attentions. Inorganic arsenic compounds can be removed from soil and aqueous system through the co-precipitation by complexing with iron hydroxide. Therefore, Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria have been expected to depollute the arsenic compounds from environment coupling with the microbial iron oxidation. To date, an increasing number of studies have reported that Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria were used in the bioremediation of environmental arsenic pollution. The Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria used for the arsenic removal must have an arsenic tolerance in order to function in the arsenic-containing environment. Whether the microorganisms have arsenic tolerance always depends on its genetic basis. Besides, different bacterial strains have different physiological characteristics and are suitable for remediation of different arsenic-contaminated environments. By summarizing the arsenic tolerance genes of eight representative Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria, this paper represents their arsenic tolerance mechanism, research overview and application prospect, in an attempt to provide a reference for the technological innovation of applying Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria to arsenic removal.