Microorganisms – Tools for Bioremediation of Uranium Contaminated Environments

Uranium contaminated sites harbor viable and metabolically active microorganisms, capable of interacting with uranium and impacting its distribution. This study wants to contribute to a better understanding of the microbe-uranium interactions in the Urgeiriça mine (Portugal) by enumerating, identifying and characterizing U resistant strains. Rhodanobacter genus included a major group of U (VI) resistant isolates up to 2 mM U (VI). The analysis suggests that different species belonging to this genus have different resistance profiles. The recovery of these bacteria as a major group of isolates indicate that these microorganisms might have an important ecological role in these environments.