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Analysis of the Cadmium Removal Mechanism of Human Gut Bacteria Enterococcus faecalis Strain ATCC19433 from a Genomic Perspective

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Abstract

Cadmium (Cd) is one of the most well-known toxic metals capable of entering the human body via the food chain, leading to serious health problems. Human gut microbes play a pivotal role in controlling Cd bioavailability and toxicity within the human gastrointestinal tract, primarily due to their capacity for Cd adsorption and metabolism. In this work, a Cd-resistant bacterial strain, Enterococcus faecalis strain ATCC19433 was isolated from human gut microbiota. Cd binding assays and comprehensive characterization analyses were performed, revealing the ability of strain ATCC19433 to remove Cd from the solution. Cd adsorption primarily occurred on the bacterial cell walls, which was ascribed to the exciting of functional groups on the bacterial surfaces, containing alkyl, amide II, and phosphate groups; meanwhile, Cd could enter cells, probably through transport channels or via diffusion. These results indicated that Cd removal by the strain was predominantly dependent on biosorption and bioaccumulation. Whole-genome sequencing analyses further suggested the probable mechanisms of biosorption and bioaccumulation, including Cd transport by transporter proteins, active efflux of Cd by cadmium efflux pumps, and mitigating oxidative stress-induced cell damage by DNA repair proteases. This study evaluated the Cd removal capability and mechanism of Enterococcus faecalis strain ATCC19433 while annotating the genetic functions related to Cd removal, which may facilitate the development of potential human gut strains for the removal of Cd.

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Data Availability

All the data obtained in this study are presented in this paper, and the specific sequencing results and element determination data can be obtained from the author (yuzheng330@126.com).

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (52160015), the Guizhou Provincial Science and Technology Development Project (QKZYD [2022]4022), the Guizhou Hundred Level Talents Project (Guizhou Kehe Platform Talents [2020]6002), the Basic Research Program of Guizhou Province of China (No. ZK[2024]276), and the Guizhou Provincial Science and Technology Projects, (No.[2020]-046).

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  1. Yu Zheng

    Present address: Guizhou Ecological Environment Resources Management Co., LTD, Guiyang, 550009, China

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Guizhou University, Guiyang, 550025, China

    Yu Zheng, Zhibin Duan, Yonggui Wu, Yang Luo, Xiaoyu Peng & Jianye Wu

  2. Guizhou Hostile Environment Ecological Restoration Technology Engineering Research Centre, Guiyang, 550025, China

    Yonggui Wu

  3. School of Public Health, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, 563006, China

    Zhibin Duan

  4. Guizhou Karst Environmental Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Ministry of Education, Guiyang, 550025, China

    Yonggui Wu

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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study’s conception and design. Yu Zheng: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, methodology, software, writing–original draft, and writing–review and editing. Zhibin Duan: conceptualization, supervision, and writing–review and editing. Yonggui Wu: funding acquisition, project administration, resources, and writing–review and editing. Yang Luo: formal analysis, methodology, and writing–review and editing. Xiaoyu Peng: validation and supervision. Jianye Wu: formal analysis and validation. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Yonggui Wu.

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This study focuses on screening and studying bacterial strains, while the specific extraction of bacterial strains from human fecal samples does not require additional ethical approval. As such, it does not involve direct human experimentation or any associated ethical concerns, but we still emphasize our commitment to ethical standards. The human fecal samples used in our study were obtained with proper informed consent procedures and were processed in a way that ensures the complete anonymity of the donors, with no personally identifiable information included. No specific ethical approval was required for this part of the study.

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Zheng, Y., Duan, Z., Wu, Y. et al. Analysis of the Cadmium Removal Mechanism of Human Gut Bacteria Enterococcus faecalis Strain ATCC19433 from a Genomic Perspective. Biol Trace Elem Res (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-024-04169-6

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