Interactions of Paenibacillus sp. JG-TB8 and Sulfolobus acidocaldarius with U(VI)

Microorganisms are interacting in multiple ways with radionuclides. A high number of studies were dedicated to elucidate the bacterial mechanisms of uranium binding. However, little is known about the complexation of this radionuclide by representatives of archaea. The objective of the present work was to investigate whether the structural differences between the cell walls of archaea and bacteria influence the cellular localization and the molecular environment of U(VI) bound by the two kinds of organisms. For this, Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Time-Resolved Laser-induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy (TRLFS), and X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) were used