Authors: Vandana Prasad
Abstract: Microorganisms are pivotal drivers of Earth's biogeochemical cycles, mediating transformations of essential elements such as carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and metals. In recent years, attention has increasingly turned to the capacity of certain microbes to synthesize nanoparticles either as byproducts of metabolism or through controlled biological processes. These nanoparticle-producing microorganisms (NPMs) exert significant influence on the fate, transformation, and mobility of both organic and inorganic compounds in the environment. This review explores the role of NPMs in biogeochemical cycling, focusing on how microbially synthesized nanoparticles modulate redox reactions, element sequestration, nutrient availability, and ecosystem feedback loops. Emphasis is placed on the interface between microbial metabolism and nanomaterial formation, including mechanisms such as enzymatic reduction, biomineralization, and biosorption. We also examine the ecological implications of these microbial-nanoparticle interactions for soil and aquatic environments, including their influence on pollutant transformation, metal immobilization, and carbon sequestration. Finally, we highlight the biotechnological potential of leveraging these processes for sustainable environmental management and propose future research directions for understanding nanoparticle-mediated geochemical transformations.
DOI: http://doi.org/10.61137/ijsret.vol.8.issue6.578
