Microbial Remediation of Heavy Metal Pollution​

The escalating issue of heavy metal pollution in soils and water bodies calls for innovative remediation techniques. Microbes have shown promise in addressing this environmental hazard, thanks to their abilities to either bioaccumulate or convert these metals into less harmful forms. Specific microbial strains have been identified that possess these capabilities, which can be further enhanced through genetic engineering. This focus on microbial solutions aims to tackle the pervasive problem of heavy metal pollutants, which jeopardize both ecological and public health.

Microoorganisms can be genetically engineered to enhance their metal uptake and transformation capabilities, making them highly effective for environmental remediation. For example, Bacillus species not only bioaccumulate metals, including lead and cadmium, but also produce substances that facilitate metal precipitation. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae effectively adsorbs metals such as copper, leveraging its cell wall components to bind these ions, while fungal Aspergillus species are adept at accumulating and transforming heavy metals through biosorption and bioaccumulation processes.

This Research Topic aims to further the use of microbial interventions to clean up environments contaminated with heavy metals. By identifying and genetically optimizing microbes that can bioaccumulate or transform toxic metals, this collection explores the development of scalable and effective remediation strategies that improve environmental health and facilitate ecological restoration.

To advance our understanding of these biological processes, we welcome Original Research, Review, Mini Review, Methods and Perspective articles that explore the following areas:

• Identification of metal-accumulating microbial strains;

• Genetic modification techniques to enhance microbial remediation capacity;

• Field trials demonstrating the effectiveness of microbial remediation methods;

• Impact assessments of microbial heavy metal remediation on ecosystem health.

Please note that Microbiotechnology does not consider descriptive studies that are solely based on amplicon (e.g., 16S rRNA) profiles, unless they are accompanied by a clear hypothesis and experimentation and provide insight into the microbiological system or process being studied.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: microbial remediation, heavy metal pollution, Genetic Engineering Microbes, Environmental Biotechnology, Bioremediation Techniques, Sustainable Pollution Solutions, Ecosystem Restoration

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.