science

Geobacter uraniireducens

Geobacter uraniireducens is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Geobacter uraniireducens rather than just read about it. In short: Geobacter uraniireducens (more recently known as Geotalea uraniireducens) is a gram-negative, rod-shaped, anaerobic, chemolithotrophic, mesophilic, and motile bacterium from the genus of Geobacter. G. uraniireducens has been found to reduce iron and uranium in sediment and soil.

Key takeaways

Geobacter uraniireducens belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Geobacter uraniireducens to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Geobacter uraniireducens from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Geobacter uraniireducens (more recently known as Geotalea uraniireducens) is a gram-negative, rod-shaped, anaerobic, chemolithotrophic, mesophilic, and motile bacterium from the genus of Geobacter. G. uraniireducens has been found to reduce iron and uranium in sediment and soil. It is being studied for use in bioremediation projects due to its ability to reduce uranium and arsenic.

History Geobacter uraniireducens was isolated from the subsurface sediment of a previous uranium ore processing facility undergoing uranium bioremediation in 2002. This occurred during a field study by Robert Anderson and his associates at the Old Rifle in situ test plot area in Rifle, Colorado. Shelobolina et al. (2008) further described the strain Rf4T While Geobacter uraniireducens is the basonym, David Waite and associates reclassified it to the current preferred name, Geotalea uraniireducens in their 2020 paper.

Characteristics Geobacter uraniireducens are gram negative bacteria that are motile rods with rounded ends and two to four long lateral flagellum, as well as pili and vesicles.

Extracellular electron transport strategies The strategy of G. uraniireducens for extracellular electron transport (EET) is to facilitate iron (Fe(III)) oxide reduction via the production of a soluble electron shuttle. It has been found that riboflavin mediates EET to reduce extracellular electron acceptors. This is important because unlike in most Geobacter species, where conductive pili are critical for effective reduction of extracellular electron acceptors, the pili of G. uraniireducens are not conductive.

Metabolic mechanisms Geobacter uraniireducens is an iron-reducing bacteria that uses acetate as an electron donor and reduces uranium (U(VI)). In addition to Fe(III), it is also able to use Mn(IV), anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate, malate and fumarate as electron acceptors. As it uses Fe(III) oxide as the electron acceptor, it can oxidize acetate, lactate, pyruvate and ethanol as electron donors.

Applications

Bioremediation Geobacter uraniireducens have been used in bioremediation studies in situ to decontaminate groundwater containing high levels of uranium from previous activities. This process can be enhanced by using acetate to stimulate increased populations.

Environmental implications One environmental implication of interest in G. uraniireducens is its arsenic (As(V)) reducing capabilities in subsurface sediments. This ability is proposed to be due to gene encoding for respiratory arsenate reductase.

References

External links Type strain of Geobacter uraniireducens at BacDive - the Bacterial Diversity Metadatabase

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Geobacter uraniireducens

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Geobacter uraniireducens claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Geobacter uraniireducens before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Geobacter uraniireducens ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Geobacter uraniireducens

In research: Geobacter uraniireducens appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Geobacter uraniireducens in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Geobacter uraniireducens is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bacteria described in 2008, Thermodesulfobacteriota, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Geobacter uraniireducens outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Geobacter uraniireducens in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Geobacter uraniireducens means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Geobacter uraniireducens out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Geobacter uraniireducens in simple terms?

Why does Geobacter uraniireducens matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Geobacter uraniireducens?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Geobacter uraniireducens.