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Arsenite oxidation by Alcaligenes sp. strain RS-19 isolated from arsenic-contaminated mines in the Republic of Korea

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Abstract

Arsenite [As(III)]-oxidizing bacteria play important roles in reducing arsenic [As] toxicity and mobility in As-contaminated areas. As-resistant bacteria were isolated from the soils of two abandoned mines in the Republic of Korea. The isolated bacteria showed relatively high resistances to As(III) up to 26 mM. The PCR-based 16S rRNA analysis revealed that the isolated As-resistant bacteria were close relatives to Serratia marcescensa, Pseudomonas putida, Pantoea agglomerans, and Alcaligenes sp. Among the five As-resistant bacterial isolates, Alcaligenes sp. strain RS-19 showed the highest As(III)-oxidizing activity in batch tests, completely oxidizing 1 mM of As(III) to As(V) within 40 h during heterotrophic growth. This study suggests that the indigenous bacteria have evolved to retain the ability to resist toxic As in the As-contaminated environments and moreover to convert the species to a less toxic form [e.g., from As(III) to As(V)] and also contribute the biogeochemical cycling of As by being involved in speciation of As.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Korea Science and Engineering Foundation (KOSEF) through the National Research Lab. The program was funded by the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology (no. M10300000298-06J0000-29810).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), 261 Cheomdan-gwagiro, Buk-gu, Gwangju, 500-712, Republic of Korea

    In-Ho Yoon, Jin-Soo Chang, Ji-Hoon Lee & Kyoung-Woong Kim

  2. Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, 99354, USA

    Ji-Hoon Lee

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  1. In-Ho Yoon
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Correspondence to Kyoung-Woong Kim.

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Yoon, IH., Chang, JS., Lee, JH. et al. Arsenite oxidation by Alcaligenes sp. strain RS-19 isolated from arsenic-contaminated mines in the Republic of Korea. Environ Geochem Health 31, 109–117 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-008-9170-0

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