They discover a group of trees in Finland that have gold

The old adage says that money doesn’t grow on trees, but gold, apparently, yes.

A group of Finnish researchers has discovered the presence of nanoparticles of the precious metal in the needles of several red spruces that grow near a mining site.

Scientists at the University of Oulu, in Finland, suggest that this formation was caused by the activity of specific bacteria that, in the future, could be used as a kind of biological «spies» to Identify land suitable for mineral extraction.

Red spruces growing near a mining site (iStock).

The study of this type of biomineralization processes, which includes analysis in mosses, could also help develop methods to eliminate metals from waters contaminated by mining activity, according to the research published in the journal Environmental Microbiome.

Plants harbor a wide variety of microbial species in their tissues. «These so-called endophytic microbes can play a role in the biomineralization processes of plants,» explains Anna Maria Pirttila, from the University of Oulu.

Biomineralization is the process by which inorganic substances and minerals, such as gold, accumulate and solidify within plant tissues, often as part of the plant’s defense mechanisms.

However, this process is still poorly understood, as it can be sporadic and localized.

They found gold in 23 fir trees

For the study, researchers from the University of Oulu, in collaboration with the Geological Survey of Finland, collected 138 needle samples from 23 red spruce trees in a satellite mining site of the Kittil gold mine.

The analysis revealed gold nanoparticles surrounded by bacterial biofilms on the needles of four trees. DNA sequencing of these biofilms showed that certain bacterial groups (such as P3OB-42, Cutibacterium, and Corynebacterium) were more common on gold-containing needles.

The analysis revealed gold particles in the needles of four trees (ANSA).

«Our study provides preliminary evidence on how gold moves within plant shoots and how gold nanoparticles can form inside the needles,» says researcher Kaisa Lehosmaa.

«In the soil, gold is present in a soluble, liquid form. Carried by water, it reaches the needles of red spruce trees. The microbes of the tree can then precipitate this soluble gold, transforming it into solid nanometer-sized particles,» details Lehosmaa.

Anyway, this «gold dust» It is not visible to the naked eye. Nanoparticles (whose size is only a millionth of a millimeter) are too small to be collected for commercial purposes.

The results of the study will serve, instead, to develop new biological and eco-friendly methods in the exploration and removal of contaminants in mining.

ANSA Agency.

GML