Biology
Scientific paper
Dec 2006
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006agufm.b13c1105m&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2006, abstract #B13C-1105
Biology
0330 Geochemical Cycles (1030), 0406 Astrobiology And Extraterrestrial Materials, 0424 Biosignatures And Proxies, 0456 Life In Extreme Environments, 0471 Oxidation/Reduction Reactions (4851)
Scientific paper
Detection of extant life on Mars or Europa is a future goal of exobiology. For the present, biosignatures arising from life in extreme environments on Earth suggest how to search for life elsewhere. One such biosignature is the electrical current derived from the metabolic activity of microorganisms, which may be measured using microbial fuel cells (MFCs). MFCs generate electricity by coupling bacterially mediated redox transformations to electrochemical reactions through a circuit. Our laboratory fuel cell employs solid graphite electrodes and uses a proton exchange membrane to separate anode (anaerobic) and cathode (aerobic) chambers. Mineral salts media are circulated by peristaltic pump through the chambers and through temperature-controlled reservoirs that are sparged with nitrogen (anode) or oxygen (cathode). In experiments with pure cultures, bacteria reduced arsenate to arsenite in the anode chamber, and produced electrical power in the process. Power production was sustained in the MFC only while bacteria were active. An arsenate respiring bacterium, Bacillus selenitireducens, isolated from moderately-hypersaline Mono Lake, CA grew on lactate using arsenate as the electron acceptor and also grew without arsenate, using the anode as the electron acceptor. Power densities (per unit area of anode surface) of 60 μW m-2 were achieved during growth without arsenate. Less power (3 μW m-2) was produced when arsenate was available because arsenate acted as an alternate electron acceptor to the anode. Another arsenate respiring bacterium, strain SLAS-1, isolated from extremely-hypersaline Searles Lake, CA respired lactate and reduced arsenate in the MFC, albeit more slowly. An arsenite oxidizing bacterium, Alkalilimnicola ehrlichii, isolated from Mono Lake will also be tested for its ability to generate electricity before proceeding to an examination of biocurrent production using natural sediments and waters from Mono Lake and Searles Lake.
Blum J. S.
Miller Gary L.
Oremland Roland S.
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