Shewanella algae

Shewanella algae
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Bacteria
Phylum: Proteobacteria
Class: Gamma Proteobacteria
Order: Alteromonadales
Family: Shewanellaceae
Genus: Shewanella
Binomial name
Shewanella algae

Shewanella algae is a rod-shaped Gram-negative marine bacterium. S. algae is also a facultative anaerobe with the ability to reduce iron, uranium and plutonium metabolically. When no oxygen is available, it can use metal cations as the terminal electron acceptor in the electron transport chain.

S. algae is of great interest to the United States Department of Energy because of its ability to reduce the amount of radioactive waste in groundwater by making it less soluble. An example would be:



\begin{array}{lcr}
C_6H_{12}O_6 + 12 U^{6+} + 6H_2O +24 e^- \longrightarrow& 6CO_2 + 12 U^{4+} + 24H^+ \\
\qquad Water\ Soluble    & Water\ Insoluble 
\end{array}


References