Mercury Uptake by Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132: Passive or Active?

An, Jing; Zhang, Lijie; Lu, Xia; Pelletier, Dale A.; Pierce, Eric M.; Johs, Alexander; Parks, Jerry M.; Gu, Baohua

doi:10.1021/acs.est.9b00047

Title: Mercury Uptake by Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132: Passive or Active?

Journal Article · Fri May 10 00:00:00 UTC 2019 · Environmental Science and Technology

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b00047 · OSTI ID:1530103

An, Jing ^[1]; Zhang, Lijie ^[2];

^[2]; Pelletier, Dale A. ^[3];

^[2];

^[3];

^[4]

Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Environmental Sciences Division; Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang (China). Key Lab. of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Inst. of Applied Ecology
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Environmental Sciences Division
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Biosciences Division
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Environmental Sciences Division; Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States). Dept. of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

Recent studies have identified HgcAB proteins as being responsible for mercury [Hg(II)] methylation by certain anaerobic microorganisms. However, it remains controversial whether microbes take up Hg(II) passively or actively. Here, we examine the dynamics of concurrent Hg(II) adsorption, uptake, and methylation by both viable and inactivated cells (heat-killed or starved) or spheroplasts of the sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ND132 in laboratory incubations. We show that, without addition of thiols, >60% of the added Hg(II) (25 nM) was taken up passively in 48 h by live and inactivated cells and also by cells treated with the proton gradient uncoupler, carbonylcyanide-3-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). Inactivation abolished Hg(II) methylation, but the cells continued taking up Hg(II), likely through competitive binding or ligand exchange of Hg(II) by intracellular proteins or thiol-containing cellular components. Similarly, treatment with CCCP impaired the ability of spheroplasts to methylate Hg(II) but did not stop Hg(II) uptake. Spheroplasts showed a greater capacity to adsorb Hg(II) than whole cells, and the level of cytoplasmic membrane-bound Hg(II) correlated well with MeHg production, as Hg(II) methylation is associated with cytoplasmic HgcAB. Our results indicate that active metabolism is not required for cellular Hg(II) uptake, thereby providing an improved understanding of Hg(II) bioavailability for methylation.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER) (SC-23)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1530103

Journal Information:: Environmental Science and Technology, Journal Name: Environmental Science and Technology Journal Issue: 11 Vol. 53; ISSN 0013-936X

Publisher:: American Chemical Society (ACS)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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