Microbiology JoVE (Open Access) Citable · DOI

Synthesizing Sodium Tungstate and Sodium Molybdate Microcapsules via Bacterial Mineral Excretion

Name: Synthesizing Sodium Tungstate and Sodium Molybdate Microcapsules via Bacterial Mineral Excretion
Uploaded: 2026-06-17
Duration: 8 min 53 s
Description: We present a method, the bacterial mineral excretion (BME), for synthesizing two kinds of microcapsules, sodium tungstate and sodium molybdate, and the ...

DOI: 10.3791/57022-v

What you'll learn

✓ Culture Shewanella algae and prepare monoclonal bacterial populations
✓ Synthesize sodium tungstate and molybdate microcapsules via bacterial mineral excretion
✓ Characterize mineral shells produced by engineered bacterial metabolism
✓ Apply bacterial biomineralization to nanoparticle and microcapsule fabrication

Protocol

This work presents a protocol for manufacture sodium tungstate and sodium molybdate microcapsules via bacteria and their corresponding nanoparticles.

Difficulty

advanced

Total time

~5–7 days (including bacterial growth, culture expansion, and mineral precipitation phases)

Model organism

Shewanella algae

Biosafety

BSL-1

Steps

Culture and maintain Shewanella algae strains

Establish and propagate Shewanella algae from stock cultures using standard aerobic growth conditions. Monitor culture density and maintain viability for downstream applications.

▶ 00:41

Prepare monoclonal bacterial populations

Isolate single bacterial colonies and expand to pure monoclonal cultures. Verify purity and prepare inoculum for mineral production experiments.

▶ 02:33

Prepare sodium tungstate or molybdate media

Formulate growth media supplemented with sodium tungstate or sodium molybdate salts at specified concentrations. Sterilize and equilibrate to culture conditions.

▶ 04:23

Culture bacteria to produce biomineralized excretions

Inoculate monoclonal cultures into tungstate or molybdate-enriched media and incubate under aerobic conditions. Allow bacterial metabolism to precipitate and excrete mineral phases.

▶ 06:02

Harvest and characterize mineral microcapsules

Recover bacterial cells and mineral precipitates from culture. Analyze shell morphology, composition, and nanoparticle properties via microscopy and spectroscopy.

▶ 07:25

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