Extremely Acidic Eukaryotic (Micro) Organisms: Life in Acid Mine Drainage Polluted Environments—Mini-Review

Ana Teresa Luís, Francisco Córdoba, Catarina Antunes, Raul Loayza-Muro, José Antonio Grande, Bruna Silva, Jesus Diaz-Curiel and Eduardo Ferreira da Silva
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Ana Teresa Luís: GeoBioTec Research Unit, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Francisco Córdoba: Department of Integrated Sciences, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, University of Huelva, 21007 Huelva, Spain
Catarina Antunes: GeoBioTec Research Unit, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Raul Loayza-Muro: Laboratório de Ecotoxicología, Facultad de Ciencias y Filosofiia, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Av. Honorio Delgado 430, Lima 15102, Peru
José Antonio Grande: Department of Water, Mining and Environment, Scientific and Technological Center of Huelva, University of Huelva, 21007 Huelva, Spain
Bruna Silva: GeoBioTec Research Unit, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Jesus Diaz-Curiel: Escuela Técnica Superior Ingenieros de Minas, Rios Rosas 21, 28003 Madrid, Spain
Eduardo Ferreira da Silva: GeoBioTec Research Unit, Department of Geosciences, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 19, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) results from sulfide oxidation, which incorporates hydrogen ions, sulfate, and metals/metalloids into the aquatic environment, allowing fixation, bioaccumulation and biomagnification of pollutants in the aquatic food chain. Acidic leachates from waste rock dams from pyritic and (to a lesser extent) coal mining are the main foci of Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) production. When AMD is incorporated into rivers, notable changes in water hydro-geochemistry and biota are observed. There is a high interest in the biodiversity of this type of extreme environments for several reasons. Studies indicate that extreme acid environments may reflect early Earth conditions, and are thus, suitable for astrobiological experiments as acidophilic microorganisms survive on the sulfates and iron oxides in AMD-contaminated waters/sediments, an analogous environment to Mars; other reasons are related to the biotechnological potential of extremophiles. In addition, AMD is responsible for decreasing the diversity and abundance of different taxa, as well as for selecting the most well-adapted species to these toxic conditions. Acidophilic and acidotolerant eukaryotic microorganisms are mostly composed by algae (diatoms and unicellular and filamentous algae), protozoa, fungi and fungi-like protists, and unsegmented pseudocoelomata animals such as Rotifera and micro-macroinvertebrates. In this work, a literature review summarizing the most recent studies on eukaryotic organisms and micro-organisms in Acid Mine Drainage-affected environments is elaborated.

Keywords: AMD (Acid Mine Drainage); metal mining; extremophilic organism; green algae; micro-macroinvertebrates; fungi; Rotifera; Euglena; protozoa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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