Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 nanowires are outer membrane and periplasmic extensions of the extracellular electron transport components

Bacterial nanowires offer an extracellular electron transport (EET) pathway for linking the respiratory chain of bacteria to external surfaces, including oxidized metals in the environment and engineered electrodes in renewable energy devices. Despite the global, environmental, and technological consequences of this biotic-abiotic interaction, the composition, physiological relevance, and electron transport mechanisms of bacterial nanowires remain unclear. We report, to our knowledge, the first in vivo observations of the formation and respiratory impact of nanowires in the model metal-reducing microbe Shewanella oneidensis MR-1. Live fluorescence measurements, immunolabeling, and quantitative gene expression…

• NS
  National Science Foundation
• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy
• UO
  University of Southern California
• ZU
  Zhejiang University
• BE
  Basic Energy Sciences
• AF
  Air Force Office of Scientific Research