Bacteria neutralizing nuclear waste discovered

 Microbes that can clean up and neutralize nuclear waste and other toxic metals do it by generating their own electricity, U.S. researchers say.

Researchers at Michigan State University say the process can be improved and could eventually benefit sites affected by nuclear contamination.

The ability of Geobacter microbes to immobilize uranium has been well documented, but exactly how they achieve the result has been a mystery.

Researchers say they've discovered conductive pili or nanowires -- hair-like appendages found on the outside of Geobacters -- are responsible for the microbes' neutralizing ability, by managing electrical activity.

"Our findings clearly identify nanowires as being the primary catalyst for uranium reduction," MSU microbiologist Gemma Reguera said in a university release. "They are essentially performing nature's version of electroplating with uranium, effectively immobilizing the radioactive material and preventing it from leaching into groundwater."

The nanowires shield Geobacter and allow it to thrive in a toxic environment,

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Fungus could create safer, hardier grasses

Compounds produced by a beneficial fungus could create grasses that are safe for animals to eat but deadly for insect pests, U.S. researchers say. 

Purdue University scientists say a fungus called Neotyphodium, classified as an endophyte, feeds off many species of grasses while providing the grass with protection from insects, but can be toxic to animals based on the types of alkaloids it produces.

Scientists have succeeded in eliminating the alkaloid profiles that caused toxicity in livestock, but in making the grasses safe as feed for animals, their susceptibility to insects came into question, a Purdue release said Tuesday.

Working with researchers in New Zealand, Douglas Richmond, Purdue professor of entomology, identified strains two of the fungus producing compounds that protected the grasses while not endangering animals grazing on them or being fed them by farmers.

Grasses naturally infected with the desired endophyte strains can be propagated for commercial production, Richmond said.

"Both are relatively safe for mammals and other grazing wildlife," he said. "Now the seed industry can put these endophytes into turf and pasture grasses and not worry about potential non-target effects. 

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Computational chemistry shows the way to safer biofuels

Replacing gasoline and diesel with plant-based bio fuels is crucial to curb climate change. But there are several ways to transform crops to fuel, and some of the methods result in bio fuels that are harmful to health as well as nature.