The biological sulfur cycle: novel opportunities for environmental biotechnology

Although the study of sulfur cycle bacteria was already started around the 1890s by the famous microbiologists Winogradsky and Beijerinck, there are nowadays still many new discoveries to be made about the metabolic properties, phylogenetic position and ecological behaviour of bacteria that play a r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Water science and technology 2001-01, Vol.44 (8), p.57-66
Main Authors: LENS, P. N. L, KUENEN, J. G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Bacteria
Biological and medical sciences
Biological treatment of waters
Bioreactors
Biotechnology
Biotechnology - trends
Deep sea
Deep sea environments
Ecosystem
Environment and pollution
Environmental Technology
Exact sciences and technology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
General purification processes
Industrial applications and implications. Economical aspects
Methane - analysis
Microbiologists
Milieutechnologie
Oxidation-Reduction
Phylogeny
Pollution
Pollution abatement
Pollution control
Population Dynamics
Sectie Milieutechnologie
Sub-department of Environmental Technology
Sulfur
Sulfur - metabolism
Sulfur cycle
Sulphur
Wastewaters
Water Microbiology
Water treatment and pollution
WIMEK
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Summary:Although the study of sulfur cycle bacteria was already started around the 1890s by the famous microbiologists Winogradsky and Beijerinck, there are nowadays still many new discoveries to be made about the metabolic properties, phylogenetic position and ecological behaviour of bacteria that play a role in the biological sulfur cycle. The current interest of the scientific community in the biological sulfur cycle is very high, especially because of the many special organisms that have recently been discovered in the deep sea and other environments characterised by extreme conditions (such as high salt, low/high pH or temperature) and also in bioreactor environments. This paper highlights some of these new discoveries and relates them to environmental biotechnology. It is concluded that the micro-organisms from the sulfur cycle offer unique opportunities for sulfur pollution abatement and sulfur recovery.
ISSN:0273-1223
1996-9732
DOI:10.2166/wst.2001.0464