Classification of Desulfovibrio isolates recovered from a uranium mining waste pile

A large variety of bacteria was demonstrated to be present in soil and sediment samples of a uranium waste pile in Saxony, Germany. Anaerobic sulfate-reducing bacteria belonging to the genus Desulfovibrio were found among them. The study of these bacteria, which are also known to reduce U(VI), is of great importance for the development of bioremediation procedures for decontamination of the environments polluted with uranium. The indigenous for the waste Desulfovibrio isolates were classified by the use of Amplified Ribosomal DNA Restriction Endonucleases Analysis (ARDREA), Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD), Repetitive Primer Amplified Polymorphic DNA (rep-APD), and 16S rDNA Sequence.
The 16S and IGS rDNA retrieval allowed us to affiliate the natural Desulfovibrio isolates to the subspecies Desulfovibrio vulgaris (oxamicus). Using RAPD and rep-APD analyses, the natural isolates were grouped in particular cluster which was not very closely related to the type strain D. vulgaris (oxamicus) 1925T. Results demonstrating the capability of the uranium waste isolates to reduce U(VI) to U(IV) will be presented.