Abstract
Cesium-137 (137Cs) is one of the radioactive substances that was released into the environment as a result of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Radiocesium exposure is of great concern due to its potential environmental implications. However, research on 137Cs removal using algae is still limited. This is the first report to describe the kinetic properties of 137Cs uptake by Vacuoliviride crystalliferum in the presence and absence of potassium. In this work, we studied the kinetic properties of 137Cs uptake using a freshwater microalga, V. crystalliferum (NIES 2860). We also analyzed the effects of temperature, light, and potassium (K) on the 137Cs uptake. Results showed that V. crystalliferum can remove up to 90% of 157 nM 137Cs within an hour. At 20 °C, the removal increased by up to 96%, compared to less than 10% at 5 °C. However, the removal was inhibited by nearly 90% in the dark compared to the removal in the light, implying that V. crystalliferum cells require energy to accumulate 137Cs. In the inhibition assay, K concentrations ranged from 0 to 500 µM and the inhibitory constant (Ki) for K was determined to be 16.7 µM. While in the uptake assay without potassium (− K), the Michaelis constant (Km) for Cs was 45 nM and increased to 283 nM by the addition of 20 µM potassium (+ K), indicating that V. crystalliferum had a high affinity for 137Cs. In addition, the maximum uptake velocity (Vmax) also increased from 6.75 to 21.10 nmol (mg Chl h)−1, implying the existence of Cs active transport system. In conclusion, V. crystalliferum is capable of removing radioactive 137Cs from the environment and the removal was favorable at both normal temperature and in the light.
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Funding
This research was funded by JSPS KAKENHI (Grant Number JP25550060). JMK is a researcher of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia under the Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme (PY/2020/042020).
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JK performed the literature search, analyzed the experimental data, and wrote the manuscript. SF conducted the experimental work and reviewed the manuscript. YS partly supported the experiments and reviewed the manuscript. KI designed and performed the experimental work, analyzed the data, and reviewed the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Khudzari, J., Fukuda, Sy., Shiraiwa, Y. et al. Kinetic properties of 137Cs uptake by the cesium-accumulating eustigmatophycean microalga. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 34460–34467 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24573-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-24573-6