Orientador: Laura Maria Mariscal Ottoboni / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-12T18:47:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rodrigues_VivianeDrumond_M.pdf: 728061 bytes, checksum: 4bc4757d5fadae7450f0f4ff77e4ae1b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009 / Resumo: Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans é uma bactéria Gram negativa, anaeróbica facultativa, acidofílica, quimiolitotrófica e mesofílica. A. ferrooxidans é capaz de utilizar ferro e enxofre como fonte de energia e é um dos microrganismos mais utilizados no processo de biolixiviação. Durante este processo a bactéria pode estar sujeita a diversos tipos de estresse, entre eles, o estresse oxidativo. Entre os principais sensores relacionados à resposta antioxidante estão: a enzima SOD e as proteínas dos sistemas tiorredoxina e glutarredoxina. A SOD atua como defesa primária na remoção de espécies reativas do oxigênio. O sistema tiorredoxina é composto por NADPH, TrxR e Trx. O sistema glutarredoxina é formado por NADPH, GR, GSH e Grx. Os sistemas tiorredoxina e glutarredoxina desempenham um papel fundamental contra espécies reativas do oxigênio e na manutenção do ambiente redutor da célula. No primeiro capítulo, a linhagem brasileiraA. ferrooxidans LR foi utilizada para o estudo da expressão de genes dos sistemas tiorredoxina e glutarredoxina, por PCR em tempo real, em diferentes condições: (a) nas taxas de 50, 75 e 100% de oxidação de Fe2+, (b) em um e dois dias após a taxa de 100% de oxidação de Fe2+, (c) na presença de calcopirita e (d) após diferentes tempos de heat shock. Em geral, nas diferentes taxas de oxidação de Fe2+, os genes do sistema tiorredoxina foram mais expressos que os do sistema glutarredoxina. Em um dia após 100% de oxidação de Fe2+, a maioria dos genes teve expressão induzida. Em dois dias a partir desta taxa de oxidação de Fe2+, apenas os genes trxB e gor foram induzidos em relação ao controle, sugerindo que os produtos desses genes podem exercer a função de chaperona durante o estresse oxidativo. Na presença de calcopirita, apenas o gene gor foi induzido, indicando que GR pode estar envolvida no controle da homeostase celular. Esta enzima também pode ser necessária para a atividade de GSH, proteína envolvida no metabolismo de enxofre. Após o heat shock, os níveis de expressão do gene que codifica a proteína Grx3 aumentaram significativamente, possivelmente devido à propriedade de co-chaperona da proteína. No segundo capítulo foram feitas análises in silico das sequências de aminoácidos das proteínas GR, TrxR e SOD de A. ferrooxidans. A análise de in silico mostrou que existem muitas semelhanças entre as proteínas TrxR e GR, como por exemplo, estrutura secundária, peso molecular, sítio ativo, motivos funcionais e domínios. Foi realizada a quantificação de proteínas totais, a determinação da atividade em espectrofotômetro das enzimas GR e TrxR, a atividade em PAGE não desnaturante das proteínas GR e SOD e a caracterização de SOD durante o crescimento de A. ferrooxidans LR em ferro e em células mantidas em contato com a calcopirita por 1 e 10 dias. A concentração de proteínas totais foi menor em células mantidas por 10 dias em contato com a calcopirita, e uma das razões pode ser o maior estresse oxidativo. A atividade das enzimas GR, TrxR e SOD aumentou neste mesmo período de tempo, sugerindo a presença de estresse. A caracterização com KCN e H2O2 mostrou que a enzima SOD de A. ferrooxidans era do tipo FeSOD. / Abstract: Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is a Gram-negative, anaerobic facultative, acidophilic, chemolithoautotrophic and mesophilic bacterium. A. ferrooxidans is able to use iron and sulfur as energy source and is one of the microorganisms used in the bioleaching process. During this process, the bacterium may be subjected to several stressful situations including the oxidative stress. Among the proteins involved in the antioxidant response are the enzyme SOD and the proteins from the thioredoxin and the glutaredoxin systems. SOD removes the reactive oxygen species. The thioredoxin system is composed by NADPH, TrxR and Trx. The glutaredoxin system consists of NADPH, GR, GSH and Grx. The thioredoxin and the glutaredoxin systems play a key role against the reactive oxygen species and maintain the reducing environment of the cell. In the first chapter, the Brazilian strain A. ferrooxidans LR was used to study the expression of genes from the thioredoxin and the glutaredoxin systems, by real-time PCR, in different conditions: (a) at 50, 75 and 100% of Fe2+ oxidation, (b) in one a and in two days after 100% of Fe2+ oxidation, (c) in the presence of chalcopyrite and (d) after different periods of time of heat shock. In general, on the different rates of Fe2+ oxidation, the genes of the thioredoxin system showed a higher expression than the genes from the glutaredoxin system. In one day after 100% of oxidation of Fe2+, the majority of the genes had their expression induced. In two days after 100% of oxidation of Fe2+, only the genes trxB and gor were induced suggesting that the product of these genes may act as chaperones during the oxidative stress. In the presence of chalcopyrite, only the gene gor was induced, indicating that GR may be involved in the control of the cell homeostasis since it is necessary for GSH activity, a protein that participates in sulfur metabolism. After the heat shock, the expression of the gene that encodes the protein Grx3 increased, probably because this protein can act as a cochaperone. In the second chapter, an in silico analysis of the proteins GR, TrxR and SOD amino acids sequences from A. ferrooxidans was performed. This analysis showed that there are several similarities between TrxR and GR including, secondary structure, molecular weight, active site, functional motives and domains. Total protein content in cells grown until 80% of oxidation of Fe2+ and in cells kept for 1 and 10 days in the presence of chalcopyrite was determined. Also, in these conditions, the activities of GR and TrxR were determined in a spectrophotometer and the activities of GR and SOD were determined in gel. The total protein content was higher in control cells and in the contrary, enzyme activities were higher at 10 days of bacteria contact with chalcopyrite indicating the presence of oxidative stress. Assays with KCN and H2O2 showed that the A. ferrooxidans LR SOD was in fact a FeSOD. / Mestrado / Genetica de Microorganismos / Mestre em Genética e Biologia Molecular

No description available.

Orientador: Laura Maria Mariscal Ottoboni / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-23T19:15:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Novo_MariaTeresaMarques_D.pdf: 4388960 bytes, checksum: 4e9cc7ee25e2a967d6cd5387992b880d (MD5) Previous issue date: 1998 / Doutorado / Genetica de Microorganismos / Doutor em Ciências Biológicas

Biomining technologies have been developed to use acidophilic microorganisms and the reactions that they catalyze to extract metals from ores in the mining industry. This biological processing through hydrometallurgy is responsible for the production of a significant portion of the world’s copper and gold supplies. Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is one of the better-studied and important chemolithotrophic bacterial species that is a part of the natural consortia found in mines across the world. This acidophile is unique in the array of redox reactions it participates in as it is capable of oxidizing both iron and reduced inorganic sulfur species, enabling dissolution of metal from minerals. As the transition to renewable energy continues and the demand for electronic devices grows, more copper and other valuable metals will need to be extracted from increasingly low-grade ores, such as chalcopyrite. Additionally, there has been a growing interest in further developing this biotechnology for the leaching and the recovery of valuable metals from scrap alloys and electronic waste as these feedstock streams can contain rare metals at concentrations above those found in the earth. However, the challenge in deploying biomining to these applications involves understanding the interactions that can potentially inhibit the extraction of these metals. In this dissertation, we expanded the genetic toolbox for A. ferrooxidans by using a transposition technique for the chromosomal integration of exogenous genes. The ability to permanently modify the genome enables engineering of strains that can be used in industry without the need of maintaining selective pressure for plasmid-based expression. Next, we investigated the potential role of A. ferrooxidans in microbially influenced corrosion. We focused on finding conditions that would enable the corrosion of stainless steel, which is resistant to the medium typically used for the growth of the bacterium. Additionally, the further optimization of the corrosive environment and the introduction of genetically engineered cells led to additional corrosion of a higher-grade stainless steel. Then, we explored how altering the bioavailability of sulfur in different formulations could shift the population phenotypes in A. ferrooxidans. We found that a unified description with a few parameters could describe the wide range of behaviors observed in the presence of iron and sulfur. Thus, using this improved understanding of A. ferrooxidans, we are able to engineer phenotypes of interest to generate robust strains that can modulate leaching conditions.

This thesis focuses on the study of the influence of selected parameters on the course of microbial cultivation and evaluation of bioprocess. It is divided into two parts. The first part deals with the production of mutant forms of the protein cryptogein yeast Pichia pastoris. The theoretical part summarizes the findings of the yeast P. pastoris and its expression. It also deals with cryptogein that induces defense reactions in plants. In the experimental part was produced mutant cryptogein X24, in which the concentration of each fraction and the ability to transfer sterols. The second part of this thesis is focused on aerobic and anaerobic oxidation of elemental sulfur by Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans. In the theoretical section, our knowledge on A. ferrooxidans, its metabolism and the importance of ATP in cell metabolism was summarized. In the experimental part, the above bioprocess was monitored using pH, biomass concentration, the rate of oxidation of elemental sulfur the cellular ATP content.

No description available.

Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans (A. f.) est un modèle bactérien parfaitement adapté à l’étude de la survie en milieu acide. Si plusieurs métalloprotéines ont été identifiées et caractérisées d’un point de vue biochimique, le fonctionnement de la chaîne respiratoire couplant l’oxydation du Fe(II) à la réduction de l’oxygène dans cet organisme n’est pas élucidée. Au cours de ce travail de thèse, après avoir optimisé les conditions de croissance de la bactérie et de production des protéines redox impliquées, nous avons reconstitué sur interface électrochimique une partie de la chaîne respiratoire d’A. f. dans le but de déterminer étape par étape le chemin de transfert d’électrons (TE). Notre attention s’est portée sur trois protéines qui interagissent dans la chaîne respiratoire: la cytochrome c oxidase (CcO), la cuprédoxine AcoP, qui copurifie avec la CcO mais de fonction inconnue, et un cytochrome dihémique (Cyt c4) proposé comme interagissant avec la CcO. La mise en évidence, puis la quantification d’un TE intermoléculaire entre le Cyt c4 et AcoP, puis entre le Cyt c4 et la CcO nous a permis de proposer un rôle pour AcoP et un nouveau chemin de TE vers la CcO. Nous avons ensuite étudié les propriétés électrochimiques de la CcO vis à vis de la réduction catalytique de l’O2, en particulier avec une forte affinité. Nous avons ainsi pu montrer que la CcO de A. f. réduisait l’O2 à des potentiels 500 mV plus anodiques que les CcO neutrophiles par une connexion directe de l’enzyme sur nanomatériaux carbonés. Affinité pour O2 et haut potentiel redox font de cette CcO une enzyme de choix pour développer une nouvelle génération de piles à combustible enzymatique. / Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is one of the most studied bacterial models to understand how to survive in an acid environment. Although several metalloproteins have been identified and characterized from a biochemical point of view, the electron transfer pathway (ET) of the respiratory chain coupling the oxidation of ferrous iron with the reduction of oxygen in this organism has not been elucidated.During this thesis work, after having optimized the growth conditions of the bacterium and the production of the redox proteins involved, we reconstituted on the electrochemical interface part of the respiratory chain of A. ferrooxidans for the purpose of determining step by step the ET. Our attention focused on three proteins that interact in the respiratory chain: cytochrome c oxidase (CcO), the cupredoxin AcoP, which co-purifies with CcO but of unknown function, and a cytochrome dihemic (Cyt c4) proposed as interacting with the CcO. The demonstration, then the quantification of an intermolecular ET between the Cyt c4 and AcoP, then between the Cyt c4 and the CcO allowed us to propose a role for AcoP and a new pathway for the ET to the CcO. We then studied the electrochemical properties of CcO with respect to the catalytic reduction of O2. We have demonstrated the strong affinity of this oxidase for O2. We have established the chemical functions required to obtain a direct wiring of the enzyme on carbon nanomaterials. This showed that A. ferrooxidans CcO reduced O2 at potentials 500 mV more anodic than neutrophilic CcOs. Affinity for O2 and high redox potential make this CcO an enzyme of choice to develop a new generation of enzymatic fuel cells.

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No. of bitstreams: 1 castelblanco_mn_me_araiq_par.pdf: 1007182 bytes, checksum: a277306214e78520e7169816799bf058 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-05-06 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / A demanda crescente de metais como ferro, cobre, entre outros ocasionou o esgotamento progressivo dos depósitos minerais; de tal modo que as companhias mineradoras desenvolveram tecnologias alternativas aos métodos convencionalmente aplicados para a recuperação e extração de metais valiosos partir de minerais de baixo teor e outras fontes de metais polimetálicos como minerais de ferro que contem metais de base associados. Uma dessas alternativas é a biomineração que utiliza principalmente microrganismos procariontes e eucariontes para acelerar a dissolução oxidativa de minerais sulfetados presentes em minérios de baixo teor produzindo a solubilização de metais associados; esta biotecnologia é atualmente usada apenas para processar minérios reduzidos e rejeitos minerais uma vez que a maioria destes minerais são sulfetados. No entanto, muitos metais de valor econômico também são encontrados em minerais que são parcial ou totalmente oxidados como as lateritas de cobre ou níquel, minerais que não são susceptíveis à dissolução oxidativa; portanto, os minerais de ferro férrico contidos nesses minérios não podem ser processados oxidativamente, pois estes compostos são susceptíveis de serem reduzidos por processos biológicos, derivando na solubilização de metais associados. Microrganismos acidófilos tais como Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans podem catalisar a redução dissimilatória de íons férricos na ausência de oxigênio para acelerar a solubilização destes metais. Estudos recentes têm mostrado que essa nova abordagem pode ser utilizada para extrair metais tais como níquel e cobre a partir de minérios oxidados a uma velocidade mais elevada do que pode ser conseguido por processos oxidativos. Neste trabalho, foram realizados ensaios de redução biológica de íons férricos acoplado a oxidação anaeróbia de enxofre elementar em um biorreator automatizado de 2 L com temperatura, agitação e pH constantes, usando um minério de ferro e uma cultura pura da bactéria anaeróbia facultativa At. ferrooxidans. A amostra foi fornecida pelo Instituto Tecnológico Vale - Desenvolvimento Sustentável (ITV-DS) e analisada por difração de raios X (DRX) evidenciando fases dominantes de monazita (Ce, La, Nd, Th) PO4, coesita (SiO2) e goethita (FeO (OH)). Os resultados do processo mostraram que metais como Cr, Al, Ca, Co Cu, K, Mg Mn, Ni, Pb e Zn foram solubilizados no processo bioredutivo com porcentagens de remoção de 93,3% para Mn e 34,7 para Zn, Nb um metal raro e as terras raras como lantânio (La) e cério (Ce) foram também solubilizadas no processo com 61%,17,9 % e 3,2% respetivamente, as outras terras raras que não solubilizaram como Sm e Nd foram expostas no resíduo mineral. Também foram solubilizados fosfatos nos primeiros dez dias atingindo 1% de solubilização. O resíduo solido foi avaliado por DRX e apresentou formação de novas fases como sodalita (K7,7Na0,3(AlSiO4)6(Cl)4)2), berlinita (AlPO4) e hematolita ((Mn2+, Mg, Al)15(AsO3) (AlO4)2(OH)2) e uma aparente diminuição da presença das fases de goethita e monazita. A análise do resíduo por microscopia eletrônica de varredura com emissão de campo (MEV-FEG) mostrou uma diferença na diminuição da presença das partículas menores presentes na amostra original e claramente uma maior presença de partículas maiores no sólido biolixiviado. Os resultados obtidos neste trabalho mostraram a recuperação de diversos metais, além de terras raras num minério de ferro, a recuperação de fosfatos que não estava prevista como objetivo inicial do trabalho, também foi observada. Estes resultados evidenciam que a dissolução redutiva catalisada por bactérias é uma alternativa promissória para a utilização de diversos tipos de minério de baixo teor que não poderiam ser processados por processos oxidativos e que seriam uma fonte para a recuperação de metais e outros compostos de interesse econômico, além de ser. ambientalmente amigável comparada com os processos convencionalmente aplicados para a recuperação de metais. / The growing demand for metals such as iron, copper, and others has caused the gradual exhaustion of mineral deposits; such a way that the mining companies have developed technologies alternative to the methods conventionally applied for the recovery and extraction of valuable metals from low grade minerals and other sources of polymetallic metals such as iron minerals which contains base metals associated. One such alternative is the biomining which uses mainly microorganisms prokaryotes and eukaryotes to accelerate the oxidative dissolution of sulphide minerals present in low grade ores producing solubilization of associated metals; This biotechnology is currently used only to process reduced ores and minerals tailings since most of these minerals are sulphides. However, many metals of economic value are also found in minerals that are partially or fully oxidized like copper or nickel laterites, minerals that are not susceptible to oxidative dissolution; therefore, the mineral ferric iron contained in these ores can not be oxidatively processed, since these compounds are capable of being reduced by biological processes, deriving the associated solubilizing metals. Acidophilic microorganisms such as Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans can catalyze the dissimilatory reduction of ferric iron in the absence of oxygen to accelerate the solubilization of these metals. Recent studies have shown that this new approach can be used to extract metals such as copper and nickel from oxide ores at a higher speed than can be achieved by oxidative processes. In this work were carried out biological reduction tests of ferric iron coupled anaerobic oxidation of elemental sulfur in an automated bioreactor 2 L with temperature, agitation and pH constant in anaerobic conditions using an iron ore and a pure culture of facultative anaerobic bacterium At. ferrooxidans. The sample was provided by the Vale Technology Institute - Sustainable Development (ITV-DS) and analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) showing dominant phases of monazite ((Ce, La, Nd, Th) PO4), coesita (SiO2) and goethite (FeO (OH)). The process results showed that metals such as Cr, Al, Ca, Co Cu, K, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn were solubilized in the bioreductive process with removal percentages 93.3% by Mn and 34.7, for Zn, Nb, a rare metal and rare earths elements such as lanthanum (La) and cerium (Ce) were also solubilized in the process with 61%, 17.9% and 3,2% respectively, other rare earths not solubilized as Sm and Nd were exposed in the mineral residue. Also were solubilized phosphates in the first ten days to reach 1% solubilization. The solid residue was evaluated by XRD and showed formation of new phases such as sodalite (K7,7Na0,3(AlSiO4)6(Cl)4)2), berlinita (AlPO4) and hematolita ((Mn2+, Mg, Al)15(AsO3) (AlO4)2(OH)2) and an apparent reduction in the presence of goethite and monazite phases Analysis of the residue by scanning electron microscopy with field emission (SEM-FEG) showed a difference in reducing the presence of smaller particles present in the original sample and clearly a greater presence of larger particles in the solid biolixiviado. The results of this study showed the recovery of various metals, besides rare earths in an iron ore, phosphates recovery which was not expected as initial objective of this study was also observed. These results show that the reductive dissolution catalyzed by bacteria is a promising alternative to the use of different types of low grade ores that could be processed by oxidative processes and it would be a source for recovery of metals and other compounds of economic interest, besides being environmentally friendly compared to the processes conventionally applied to the recovery of metals.

Orientador: Laura Maria Mariscal Ottoboni / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-10T19:02:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Verde_LeandroCostaLima_M.pdf: 22357047 bytes, checksum: a920490b43f710509a803be1562c34e3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Resumo: Acidithiobaci/lus ferrooxidans é uma bactéria Gram negativa, mesofilica, acidofilica, quimiolitotrófica, capaz de obter energia da oxidação do íon ferroso, enxofre ou compostos reduzidos de enxofre. É um dos principais microrganismos responsáveis pela lixiviação de metais, podendo ser utilizada em processos industriais para obtenção de cobre, urânio ou metais preciosos, a partir de minérios de baixo teor. Na primeira parte deste projeto foi analisada a expressão diferencial de genes, através de RAP-PCR., em células de A. ferrooxidans mantidas na presença dos sulfetos metálicos bomita e calcopirita por 24 horas. Dezoito cDNAs com expressão diferencial foram identificados. Esses cDNAs tiveram a expressão diferencial confirmada e caracterizada por PCR em tempo real. Na presença de bomita, nenhum dos genes foi reprimido, e dentre os induzidos estão os envolvidos na síntese de proteínas. Na presença de calcopirita, cinco genes envolvidos no pr~cessamento de proteínas foram reprimidos e cinco genes envolvidos no sistema de transporte foram induzidos. A expressão diferencial desses genes na presença dos dois sulfetos de cobre pode ser devido a alterações do pH, a presença de íons de cobre em solução e a limitação de nutrientes. Dentre os genes com expressão mais acentuada na presença de calcopirita, foi encontrado um que codifica uma proteína receptora dependente de TonB. Esta proteína está envolvida no sistema de captação de Fe3+. Na segunda parte deste trabalho foi feita uma análise do genoma de A. ferrooxid.ans. Esta análise mostrou que o gene que codifica a proteína receptora dependente de TonB se encontra agrupado com outros seis genes envolvidos com o sistema de captação de Fe3+. A expressão destes genes foi analisada porPCR em tempo real em células de A. ferrooxidans mantidas por 24 horas na presença de bomita e calcopirita. Os resultados mostraram que a expressão dos genes é induzida na presença de calcopirita e inalterada na presença de bomita. Uma possível explicação para isto é a quantidade de ferro que é menor na presença de calcopirita, por ser um minério de dificil oxidação. O sistema de captação de ferro é regulado por uma proteína chamada Fur. Uma análise de bioinformática da região do genoma onde se encontram os genes envolvidos na captação de Fe3+ mostrou a existência de três novas regiões de regulação, denominadas de box Fur. Uma análise no banco de dados de domínio conservado (CDD - NCBI) revelou que o receptor dependente de TonB analisado neste trabalho pertence à família de receptores CirA / Abstract: Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is a Gram-negative, mesophilic, acidophilic, chemolithoautotrophic bacterium that obtains energy from the oxidation of ferrous iron, elemental sulfur and reduced sulfur compounds. A. ferrooxidans is one of the most used microorganisms in bioleaching, an industrial process used for the recovery of copper, uranium or gold, fiom lowgrade ores. In the first part of this project the differentially expressed cDNAs were isolated by RAP-PCR from A. ferrooxidans cells maintained for 24 hours in the presence of the metal sulfides bomite and chalcopyrite. A total of 18 differentially expressed cDNAs were isolated. The differential expression of the cDNAs was confirmed by real time PCR. The results showed that these genes were not down-regulated in the presence of bomite and among the up-regulated genes were those involved in protein synthesis. In the presence of cha1copyrite, five genes related to p~otein processing ~ere down-regulated, and another five genes related to transport were upregulated. The up- and down-regulation of genes in the presence of bomite and chalcopyrite could be due to alterations in the ideal pH, the presence of copper ions in solution and nutrient limitation. Among the genes that were up-regulated in the presence of chalcopyrite, was one that encodes for a TonB-dependent receptor. This protein is part of a system involved in Fe3+ uptake. An analysis of the A. ferrooxidans genome was performed in the second part of this work and showed that the gene that encodes for !he TonB-dependent receptor is clustered with six other genes fiom the Fe3+ uptake system. The relative expression pattem of lliese genes was investigated by real time PCR in A. ferrooxidans cells maintained for 24 h iri, the presence of bomite and chalcopyrite. The results.showed that the expression of the genes is up-regulated in the presence of chalcopyrite and unchanged in the presence of bomite. A possible explanation for this is the amount of iron in solution that was smaller in the presence of chalcopyrite, since this copper sulfide is very refractory. The iron uptake genes are regulated by a protein named Fur. A bioinformatics analysis of the genomic region where these genes were found revealed the existence of three new Fur boxes. An analysis on the Conserved Domain Database (CDD NCBI) revealed that the TonB-dependent receptor belongs to the CirA family of receptors / Mestrado / Biologia Celular / Mestre em Genética e Biologia Molecular

>Magister Scientiae - MSc / The waste products acid mine drainage (AMD), formed during coal mining and fly ash (FA) from coal burning power generation, pose substantial environmental and economic problems for South Africa. Eskom has developed a remediation system employing alkaline FA to neutralize and precipitate heavy metals from toxic acidic AMD streams. The aim of this study was to assess the microbial diversity in and microbial impact on this remediation system. The total microbial diversity was assessed by well-established molecular phylogenetic analyses using 16S rDNA gene sequences. The results obtained from the AMD confirmed the presence of acidophilic organisms, such as Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans (At. ferrooxidans). After co-disposal of FA and AMD, microbial cell growth was not detected and microbial genomic DNA could not be extracted. The absence of microbial communities in the co-disposal phase is beneficial to the continuation of the development of such a co-disposal process. Results of this project will assist in the effective implementation of FA-AMD co-disposal systems, which may improve water quality in effected regions of South-Africa.