Characterization of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Inside the Myxococcus xanthus Encapsulin
Harry B McDowell, Egbert Hoiczyk, Thomas Walther, Lyudmila M Bronstein · 2025
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Description
Bacteria that store iron inside protein shells pack away far more, and tinier, mineral grains than anyone had counted. Harry McDowell and co-authors image those grains in this 2025 study of the soil bacterium Myxococcus xanthus, using electron microscopes at near-atomic sharpness. Each cage-like shell, called an encapsulin, guards the cell's iron stash.
The grains measure only about two nanometers across, with up to 2,200 per shell and about 8,500 iron atoms in all. The mineral is glassy, matching iron phosphate in makeup. Phosphorus keeps it from crystallizing; without phosphorus in the food, the grains instead form a known iron mineral, goethite. The findings refine how microbes bank iron for lean times.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Harry B McDowell, Egbert Hoiczyk, Thomas Walther, Lyudmila M Bronstein |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2025 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 55 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |