Carbonate and Phosphate Precipitation by Chromohalobacter marismortui |
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Authors: | María Angustias Rivadeneyra Agustín Martín-Algarra Antonio Sánchez-Navas Daniel Martíin-Ramos |
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Affiliation: | 1. Departamento de Microbiología, Facultad de Farmacia , Universidad de Granada, Campus Universitario de Cartuja, 18071 , Granada , Spain;2. Departamento de Estratigraía y Paleontología, Facultad de Ciencias , Universidad de Granada, Campus Universitario de Fuentenueva, 18071 , Granada , Spain;3. Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología , Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Campus Universitario de Fuentenueva, 18071 , Granada , Spain |
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Abstract: | The ability of Chromohalobacter marismortui to precipitate carbonate and phosphate minerals has been demonstrated for the first time. Mineral precipitation in both solid and liquid media at different salts concentrations and different magnesium/calcium ratios occurred whereas crystal formation was not observed in the control. The precipitated minerals were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and EDX, and were different in liquid and solid media. In liquid media aragonite, struvite, vaterite and monohydrocalcite were precipitated forming crystals and bioliths. Bioliths accreted preferentially close to organic pellicles, whereas struvite preferentially grows in microenvironments free of such pellicles. Magnesian calcite, calcian-magnesian kutnahorite, “proto-dolomite” and huntite were formed in solid media. The Mg content of the magnesian calcite and of Ca-Mg kutnahorite also varied depending on the salt concentration of the culture media. This is the first report on bacterial precipitation of Ca-Mg kutnahorite and huntite in laboratory cultures. The results of this research show the active role played by C. marismortui in mineral precipitation, and allow us to compare them with those obtained previously using other taxonomic groups of moderately halophilic bacteria. |
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Keywords: | biomineralization aragonite huntite Ca-Mg kutnahorite magnesian calcite monohydrocalcite struvite vaterite C. marismortui |
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