Science Happening Now

That’s So Metal! New Bacteria-Produced Protein Makes Rare Earth Elements:

In chemistry news, researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have discovered that a bacteria-produced protein can make rare earth elements (REE). This protein, called lanmodulin, is derived from a certain kind of bacteria. First discovered in 2018, lanmodulin is the only known biologically sourced protein that is capable of doing this. It is a macromolecule that extracts, purifies, and recycles rare earth elements. The LLNL researchers worked alongside Pennsylvania State University and Idaho National Laboratory scientists to invent this method of extraction. This discovery could herald a new era of metallurgy. Since it only uses one step for rare earth element extraction and purification ...