The genus Acidithiobacillus includes iron-oxidizing lithoautotrophs that thrive in acidic mine environments. Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is a representative species and has been extensively studied for its application to the bioleaching of precious metals. In our attempts to cultivate the type strain of A. ferrooxidans (ATCC 23270(T)), repeated transfers to fresh inorganic media resulted in ...

The susceptibility to the fouling of the NiTi and Ti6Al4V alloys due to the adhesion of microorganisms and the biofilm formation is very significant, especially in the context of an inflammatory state induced by implants contaminated by bacteria, and the implants corrosion stimulated by bacteria. The aim of this work was to examine the differences between the sulphur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB) an...

Molecular studies of enzymes involved in sulfite oxidation in Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans have not yet been developed, especially in the ATP sulfurylase (ATPS) of these acidophilus tiobacilli that have importance in biomining. This enzyme synthesizes ATP and sulfate from adenosine phosphosulfate (APS) and pyrophosphate (PPi), final stage of the sulfite oxidation by these organisms in order t...

The sulfide-rich Frasassi cave system hosts an aphotic, subsurface microbial ecosystem including extremely acidic (pH 0-1), viscous biofilms (snottites) hanging from the cave walls. We investigated the diversity and population structure of snottites from three locations in the cave system using full cycle rRNA methods and culturing. The snottites were composed primarily of bacteria related to A...

Recently, we reported the production of Cadmium sulfide (CdS) fluorescent semiconductor nanoparticles (quantum dots, QDs) by acidophilic bacteria of the Acidithiobacillus genus. Here, we report that the addition of inorganic phosphate to Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans ATCC 19703 cultures favors the biosynthesis of CdS QDs at acidic conditions (pH 3.5). The effect of pH, phosphate and cadmium con...

Bioleaching, a novel biotechnological process, is used to eliminate heavy metals from contaminated sediments by acidification as well as solubilization of heavy metals. Metals from poor-quality ore and mineral compounds are removed by Bioleaching process, which is simple and low cost effective technology. Acidophilic sulfur oxidizing bacteria (Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans, Acidithiobacillus t...

An acid mine drainage (pH 2.5-2.7) stream biofilm situated 250 m below ground in the low-temperature (6-10°C) Kristineberg mine, northern Sweden, contained a microbial community equipped for growth at low temperature and acidic pH. Metagenomic sequencing of the biofilm and planktonic fractions identified the most abundant microorganism to be similar to the psychrotolerant acidophile, Acidithiob...

A large non-coding RNA, termed α-Fur, of ~1000 nt has been detected in the extreme acidophile Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans encoded on the antisense strand to the iron-responsive master regulator fur (ferric uptake regulator) gene. A promoter for α-fur was predicted bioinformatically and validated using gene fusion experiments. The promoter is situated within the coding region and in the same ...