Strontium-90 pollution can be bioremediated with the green microalga Tetraselmis chui

Abstract

Strontium-90 (⁹⁰Sr) is an artificial radioisotope produced by nuclear fission, with a relatively long half-life of 29 years. This radionuclide is released into the environment in the event of a nuclear incident, posing a serious risk to human and ecosystem health. There is a need to develop new efficient methods for the remediation of ⁹⁰Sr, as current techniques for its removal have significant technical limitations and involve high energy and economic costs. Recently, several species of green microalgae within the class Chlorodendrophyceae have been found to form intracellular mineral inclusions of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC), which can be highly enriched in natural (non-radiogenic) Sr. As bioremediation techniques are an attractive option to address radioactive pollution, we investigated the capacity of the unicellular alga Tetraselmis chui (class Chlorodendrophyceae) to sequester ⁹⁰Sr. The ⁹⁰Sr uptake capacity of T. chui cells was assessed in laboratory cultures by monitoring the time course of radioactivity in the culture medium using liquid scintillation counting (LSC). T. chui was shown to effectively sequester ⁹⁰Sr, reducing the initial radioactivity of the culture medium by up to 50%. Thus, this study demonstrates the potential of the microalga T. chui to be used as a bioremediation agent against ⁹⁰Sr pollution.