Cadmium biosorption by Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Cadmium uptake by nonliving and resting cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae obtained from aerobic or anaerobic cultures from pure cadmium-bearing solutions was examined. The highest cadmium uptake exceeding 70 mg Cd/g was observed with aerobic baker's yeast biomass from the exponential growth phase. Nearly linear sorption isotherms featured by higher sorbing resting cells together with metal deposits localized exclusively in vacuoles indicate the possibility of a different metal-sequestering mechanism when compared to dry nonliving yeasts which did not usually accumulate more than 20 mg Cd/g. The uptake of cadmium was relatively fast, 75% of the sorption completed in less than 5 min. (c) 1993 Wiley & Sons, Inc.