Versatile mechanisms and enhanced strategies of pollutants removal mediated by Shewanella oneidensis: A review

The removal of environmental pollutants is important for a sustainable ecosystem and human health. Shewanella oneidensis (S. oneidensis) has diverse electron transfer pathways and can use a variety of contaminants as electron acceptors or electron donors. This paper reviews S. oneidensis's function in removing environmental pollutants, including heavy metals, inorganic non-metallic ions (INMIs), and toxic organic pollutants. S. oneidensis can mineralize o-xylene (OX), phenanthrene (PHE), and pyridine (Py) as electron donors, and also reduce azo dyes, nitro aromatic compounds (NACs), heavy metals, and iodate by extracellular electron transfer (EET). For azo dyes, NACs, Cr(VI), nitrite, nitrate, thiosulfate, and sulfite that can cross the membrane, S. oneidensis transfers electrons to intracellular reductases to catalyze their reduction. However, most organic pollutants cannot be directly degraded by S. oneidensis, but S. oneidensis can remove these pollutants by self-synthesizing catalysts or photocatalysts, constructing bio-photocatalytic systems, driving Fenton reactions, forming microbial consortia, and genetic engineering. However, the industrial-scale application of S. oneidensis is insufficient. Future research on the metabolism of S. oneidensis and interfacial reactions with other materials needs to be deepened, and large-scale reactors should be developed that can be used for practical engineering applications.

Automated summary

The removal of environmental pollutants is essential for the sustainability of ecosystems and human health. Shewanella oneidensis (S. oneidensis) has shown great potential in removing various pollutants, such as heavy metals, inorganic non-metallic ions, and toxic organic compounds. However, while S. oneidensis can mineralize certain organic compounds and reduce specific pollutants through extracellular electron transfer, it requires additional strategies such as catalyst synthesis, bio-photocatalytic systems, Fenton reactions, microbial consortia formation, and genetic engineering for the removal of most organic pollutants. The industrial-scale application of S. oneidensis is still limited and requires further research and development of large-scale reactors.