MICROBIAL COMPOSITION OF NATURAL Fe OXYHYDROXIDES AND ITS INFLUENCE ON ARSENIC AND ANTIMONY SORPTION

Abstract

The presented paper represents a comprehensive analysis of hydrous ferric oxides (HFOs) precipitated from Fe rich drainage waters contaminated by arsenic and antimony. Ochre samples from three abandoned Sb deposits were collected in three different seasons and were characterized from the mineralogical, geochemical, and microbiological point of view. They were formed mainly by poorly crystallized 2-line ferrihydrite, with the content of arsenic in samples ranging from 0.7 wt.% to 13 wt.% and content of antimony ranging from 0.025 wt.% up to 1.2 wt.%. Next-generation sequencing approach with 16S RNA, 18S RNA and ITS markers was used to characterize bacterial, fungal, algal, metazoal and protozoal communities occurring in the HFOs. In the 16S RNA, the analysis dominated bacteria (96.2 %) were mainly Proteobacteria (68.8 %) and Bacteroidetes (10.2 %) and to less extent also Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Firmicutes, Nitrosprae and Chloroflexi. Alpha and beta diversity analysis revealed that the bacterial communities of individual sites do not differ significantly, and only subtle seasonal changes were observed. This study provides evidence of diverse microbial communities that exist in drainage waters and are highly important in the process of mobilization or immobilization of the potentially toxic elements.