Liposoluble quinone promotes the reduction of hydrophobic mineral and extracellular electron transfer of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1

A large number of reaction systems are composed of hydrophobic interfaces and microorganisms in natural environment. However, it is not clear how microorganisms adjust their breathing patterns and respond to hydrophobic interfaces. Here, Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 was used to reduce ferrihydrite of a hydrophobic surface. Through Fe(II) kinetic analysis, it was found that the reduction rate of hydrophobic ferrihydrite was 1.8 times that of hydrophilic one. The hydrophobic surface of the mineral hinders the way the electroactive microorganism uses the water-soluble electron mediator riboflavin for indirect electron transfer and promotes MR-1 to produce more liposoluble quinones. Ubiquinone can mediate electron transfer at the hydrophobic interface. Ubiquinone-30 (UQ-6) increases the reduction rate of hydrophobic ferrihydrite from 38.5 ± 4.4 to 52.2 ± 0.8 μM·h(−1). Based on the above experimental results, we propose that liposoluble electron mediator ubiquinone can act on the extracellular hydrophobic surface, proving that the metabolism of hydrophobic minerals is related to endogenous liposoluble quinones. Hydrophobic modification of minerals encourages electroactive microorganisms to adopt differentiated respiratory pathways. This finding helps in understanding the electron transfer behavior of the microbes at the hydrophobic interface and provides new ideas for the study of hydrophobic reactions that may occur in systems, such as soil and sediment.