Wu Yang, Zhao Guozheng, Qi Hao
School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China.
Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China.
Microorganisms. 2021 Feb 7;9(2):331. doi: 10.3390/microorganisms9020331.
() is bacterium notable for its highly efficient urea degradation ability. Due to its high urease activity, has been successfully utilized in applications including solidifying soil or sand, termed "bio-concrete". In addition to calcium carbonate precipitation, urease isolated from the jack bean plant was recently demonstrated to induce the formation of magnetic iron oxide particles from soluble ferrous ion in a designed reaction. However, it remained unknown if a similar magnetic material could be formed using whole cells with high urease activity under biocompatible conditions. Here, we demonstrated that magnetic iron oxide with a highly ordered structure could be formed on the surface of cells with a theoretical product of 1.17 mg in a 2-mL reaction. Moreover, the cells surrounded by the precipitated magnetic iron oxide maintained their viability. Due to the simple cultivation of , the process developed in this study could be useful for the green synthesis of magnetic iron oxide, basic research on the mechanism of magnetic microbial-induced precipitation (MIP), and related engineering applications.
