Yin_2016_Water.Res_103_383

Mercury is a toxic heavy metal and presents significant threats to organisms and natural ecosystems. Recently, the mercury remediation as well as its detection by environmental-friendly biotechnology has received increasing attention. In this study, carboxylesterase E2 from mercury-resistant strain Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA1 has been successfully displayed on the outer membrane of Escherichia coli Top10 bacteria to simultaneously adsorb and detect mercury ion (Hg2+). The transmission electron microscopy analysis shows that Hg2+ can be absorbed by carboxylesterase E2 and accumulated on the outer membrane of surface-displayed E. coli bacteria. The adsorption of Hg2+ followed a physicochemical, equilibrated and saturatable mechanism, which well fits the traditional Langmuir adsorption model. The surface-displayed system can be regenerated through regulating pH values. As its activity can be inhibited by Hg2+, carboxylesterase E2 has been used to detect the concentration of Hg2+ in water samples. The developed surface display system will be of great potential in the simultaneous bioremediation and biodetection of environmental mercury pollution.