Differential utilization of cyclic, orthorhombic α- and chain-like polymeric μ-sulfur by Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans

作者：Peng, An-an; Xia, Jin-lan^*; Liu, Hong-chang; Nie, Zhen-yuan; Yang, Yi; Zhu, Wei

来源：Transactions of Nonferrous Metals Society of China, 2014, 24(5): 1562-1570.

DOI：10.1016/S1003-6326(14)63226-X

• sulfur oxidation
• Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans
• alpha-sulfur
• mu-sulfur
• RT-qPCR

The differential utilization of cyclic, orthorhombic alpha-Sulfur (alpha-S) and chain-like polymeric mu-sulfur (mu-S) by Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans was investigated. The growth and sulfur oxidation results indicated that utilization of mu-S by A. ferrooxidans was clearly different from alpha-S. Even if the planktonic cells were produced, the fall of pH and the rise of sulfate concentration were the same after 300 h on each substrate, the speeds of the planktonic cells increase, pH decrease and sulfate concentration increase in the earlier cultivation stage were faster on polymeric sulfur compared with the orthorhombic form. The adsorption capacity of the cells was higher on mu-S than on alpha-S. The results of SEM, DRIFTS and XRD analyses indicated that the surfaces of alpha-S and mu-S were modified differently by cells. Differential expression of 11 selected sulfur adsorption-activation and metabolism relevant genes was detected by RT-qPCR. The results showed that the expression of the hydrophobic substrate transport proteins and the sulfur metabolism related proteins was up-regulated, and the adsorption and activation related proteins were down-regulated when the cells were grown on mu-S, suggesting that mu-S could be more easily bio-adapted and activated than alpha-S.

• 出版日期2014-5
• 单位中南大学