Peptidoglycan as major binding motif for Uranium bioassociation on Magnetospirillum magneticum AMB-1 in contaminated waters

The mining and industrial use of heavy metals lead to locally high heavy metal contamination with serious consequences for the environment and local population. The high potential of biological remediation processes, in particular, the use of magnetotactic bacteria of heavy metal and radionuclide-contaminated waters has recently been discussed. Yet, the molecular reactions involved in the uptake of radionuclides, especially U, by these bacteria are unknown. The present work is a multidisciplinary approach combining wet chemistry, microscopy, and spectroscopy methods. Our findings suggest that the cell wall plays a prominent role in the bioassociation of U(VI). In time-dependent bioassociation studies, up to 95 % of the initial U(VI) was removed from the suspension within the first hours by Magnetospirillum magneticum AMB-1. PARAFAC analysis of TRLFS data highlights that peptidoglycan is the most important ligand involved, showing a stable immobilization of U(VI) over a wide pH range with the formation of three characteristic species. In addition, in-situ ATR FT-IR reveals the predominant binding to carboxylic functionalities, at higher pH polynuclear species seem to play an important role. This comprehensive molecular study may initiate in future new remediation strategies on effective immobilization of U in combination with the bacteria´s magnetic properties.