Understanding the enzyme that enables bacteria to breathe arsenic
Tuesday, August 14, 2018 - 09:51
in Health & Medicine
Arsenic-contaminated drinking water is a major health hazard, with chronic exposure causing illnesses and cancers. The World Health Organization estimates that in Bangladesh, for example, over 5 million people were exposed to arsenic-contaminated drinking water in 2009. Often, arsenic is released into water by microbes that breathe, or respire, arsenic-containing compounds. Caltech researchers have now determined the structure of the bacterial enzyme that enables arsenic respiration. The work is an important step towards predicting biological influences on arsenic mobilization in the environment.