Interplay between gold nanoparticle biosynthesis and metabolic activity of cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp PCC 6803

Many microorganisms have long been known to be able to synthesize nanoparticles either in extracellular media or inside cells but the biochemical mechanisms involved in biomineralization are still poorly understood. In this paper we report the intracellular synthesis of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) by the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 exposed to an aqueous solution of chloroauric acid. We assess the interplay between the biomineralization process and the metabolic activities (i.e. photosynthesis and respiration) of cyanobacteria cells by correlating the GNP synthesis yield with the amount of respiratory and photosynthetic oxygen exchange. The biogenic GNPs are compared in terms of their internalization and biological effects to GNPs synthesized by a standard citrate reduction procedure (cGNPs). The TEM analysis, in conjunction with spectroscopic measurements (i.e. surface plasmon resonance, fluorescence quenching and surface-enhanced Raman scattering, SERS), reveals the localization of biogenic GNPs at the level of intracytoplasmic membranes whereas the pre-formed cGNPs are located at the level of external cellular membrane. Our findings have implications for better understanding the process of biomineralization and assessing the potential risks associated with the accumulation of nanomaterials by various biological systems.