Bacteria can consume and warn of arsenic

DUBLIN, Ireland, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- British scientists say they've discovered bacteria that can live in cold areas, remove arsenic from food or water and also warn of arsenic pollution.

The discovery was made in the Giant Mine located in Canada's sub-arctic region. The mine contains more than 230,000 tons of arsenic-containing dust, making it one of the most polluted places on Earth, the researchers said.

"We discovered new types of bacteria living in biofilms on the walls of Giant Mine that consume arsenic compounds contained in the polluted water seeping through," said Thomas Osborne of University College London. "Until now, no bacteria have ever been isolated that can thrive in cold temperatures and deal with arsenic contamination.

"The other exciting possibility that this opens up is that we can isolate the enzyme from these new strains of bacteria and develop an arsenic biosensor to use in cold environments."

The research was presented Monday at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, during the autumn meeting of the Society for General Microbiology.