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Related Experiment Videos

Arsenic and selenium in microbial metabolism.

John F Stolz1, Partha Basu, Joanne M Santini

  • 1Department of Biological Sciences, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15282, USA. stolz@duq.edu

Annual Review of Microbiology
|May 18, 2006
PubMed
Summary

Prokaryotes metabolize arsenic and selenium for vital functions like respiration and detoxification. Microbial actions drive arsenic cycling, while selenium is crucial for selenoenzymes and anaerobic respiration.

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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Biochemistry
  • Environmental Science

Background:

  • Prokaryotes extensively metabolize arsenic and selenium.
  • Microbial processes significantly influence arsenic speciation, mobility, and cycling.
  • Selenium is essential for selenocysteine and selenoenzymes, and its oxyanions can be used in anaerobic respiration.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review recent advances in the microbial metabolism of arsenic and selenium.
  • To highlight the ecological, biochemical, and molecular biological aspects of these metalloids.
  • To provide a foundation for understanding the impact of genomics on arsenic and selenium research.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of recent ecological, biochemical, and molecular biology studies.
  • Analysis of microbial metabolic pathways involving arsenic and selenium.

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  • Examination of microbial resistance and respiratory processes related to arsenic and selenium.

    • Main Results:

    • Description of microbial roles in arsenic assimilation, methylation, detoxification, and anaerobic respiration.
    • Identification of microbial oxidation/reduction reactions affecting arsenic speciation and mobility.
    • Elucidation of selenium incorporation into selenocysteine and selenoenzymes.
    • Characterization of selenium oxyanions as electron acceptors in anaerobic respiration.
    • Recent discoveries in respiratory arsenate reductases, arsenic methyltransferases, selenoprotein biogenesis, and selenium methyltransferases.

    Conclusions:

    • Microbial metabolism plays a central role in the biogeochemical cycling of arsenic and selenium.
    • Recent research has significantly advanced our understanding of the molecular mechanisms and ecological roles of these elements in prokaryotes.
    • Genomics studies are poised to further illuminate the complex interactions between microbes and arsenic/selenium.