German scientists discover bacteria that neutralize toxic uranium

Scientists at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) in Germany, in collaboration with international researchers, have made a significant discovery: certain bacteria can convert toxic, dissolved uranium from mine water into a stable chemical compound. This breakthrough could pave the way for new biotechnologies to clean water and environments contaminated with heavy metals.

The study, published in Nature Communications, explained that researchers added glycerol as a natural nutrient to samples of uranium mine water in an oxygen-free environment. The experiment resulted in the disappearance of about 95% of the dissolved uranium within 130 days, as it accumulated within the bacterial cell walls.

Advanced laboratory and microscopic analyses, using the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, revealed an unexpected result: the bacterial biomass contained a high proportion of "pentavalent uranium," previously thought to be only a temporary and unstable state.

Dr. Evelyn Krautchik-Barsch, a co-author of the study, confirmed that the pentavalent uranium combined with iron and oxygen to form a stable compound known as FeU(V)O4, which remained stable even in the presence of atmospheric oxygen. She added that the research team continues to study the biochemical processes in detail, aiming to use them for environmental waste treatment and the neutralization of uranium toxicity.