Topic of Research Seminar: Wonders of Electricity Producing Bugs

Abstract: “Life is nothing but an electron looking for a place to rest.” This is the famous quote of Nobel Prize winning biochemist Albert Szent-Gyorgyi. No doubt life is more complex than a single electron but this quote tells us importance of energy and metabolism in all living systems. For gaining energy for their survival, all cells carry oxidation and reduction (redox) reactions. Electron donors (oxidation) release electrons, and are received by the electron acceptor (reduction). Energy is harvested from electrons as they are transferred from one chemical to another. For example, human cells oxidize carbon from the food we eat and reduce the oxygen we breathe. However, oxygen was not in the atmosphere during the early days of Earth life, so living things (microbes) used other respiration strategies for their survival, including reducing the electron acceptors that cannot enter the cell (unlike oxygen) and physically outside their cells. Some microbes “breathe” solid iron (III) oxide-containing rocks that cannot enter the cell and hence electrons are moved outside of the cell to reduce the extracellular electron acceptor in the process called as “extracellular electron transfer” (EET). Scientists initially discovered electroactive microbes nearly 30 years ago and have since invented ground-breaking applications for these fascinating microorganisms, including production of electricity using Bioelectrochemical Systems (BES). Many other EET based applications such as simultaneous waste water treatment and energy generation, production of useful chemicals, and biosensors are also being developed. Fundamentals of EET and applications of BESs will be discussed in this scientific talk.

Subject Field of Topic: Bioelectrochemical Systems

Name of Speaker: Dr. Waheed Miran

Professorial Rank of Speaker: Assistant Professor

University Email of Speaker: [email protected]

Research Group Weblink or University Profile weblink: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=hT2obmkAAAAJ&hl=en

Affiliation of Speaker: NUST School of Chemical and Materials Engineering (SCME)

Date of Seminar: 23 Jun 2022 at 1400 hrs

Venue: SCME Seminar Hall