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• The combination of natural microbe species enhanced both direct and indirect electron transport mechanisms. • The alliance system expands the utilization spectra of the carbon source. • Riboflavin and Phenazine two electron shuttles work in coordination. Microbial fuel cells with mixed bacteria always show better power output capacity than those with single bacteria due to synergetic effects between species. Here, a rational-designed synthetic three-species alliance system based on Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 (the model exoelectrogen), Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Lactobacillus plantarum was constructed upon process optimization, the three-species alliance system in MFC delivered a maximum power density of ∼ 207 mW/m2 by using the glucose as the substrate, which was 2 ∼ 58 times higher than that of MFC inoculated with single species. In addition, the synthetic alliance system could generate electricity from broad substrate spectrum (lactose, saccharose, maltose, arabinose, cellobiose) with enhanced performance. Electrochemical and metabolism analysis indicated inter-species synergetic enhancement on charge transfer, substrate utilization, and biofilm formation was the underlying mechanism for performance improvement in MFC by this synthetic alliance system. In this system, L. plantarum uses glucose to produce lactic acid as the electrogenic substrate and electron donor of S. oneidensis MR-1, and P. aeruginosa uses glucose to produce another electron shuttle phenazine, which can also promote the growth of S. oneidensis MR-1 biofilm and help the alliance system to transfer electrons better. This work demonstrated a new strategy to enhance the MFC performance with a rational designed synthetic bacterial community, which would further renew the toolbox for MFC optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Toxicity assessment of water is of great important to the safety of human health and to social security because of more and more toxic compounds that are spilled into the aquatic environment. Therefore, the development of fast and reliable toxicity assessment methods is of great interest and attracts much attention. In this study, by using the electrochemical activity of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 cells as the toxicity indicator, 3,5-dichlorophenol (DCP) as the model toxic compound, a new biosensor for water toxicity assessment was developed. Strikingly, the presence of DCP in the water significantly inhibited the maximum current output of the S. oneidensis MR-1 in a three-electrode system and also retarded the current evolution by the cells. Under the optimized conditions, the maximum current output of the biosensor was proportional to the concentration of DCP up to 30 mg/L. The half maximal inhibitory concentration of DCP determined by this biosensor is about 14.5 mg/L. Furthermore, simultaneous monitoring of the retarded time (Δ t) for current generation allowed the identification of another biosensor signal in response to DCP which could be employed to verify the electrochemical result by dual confirmation. Thus, the present study has provided a reliable and promising approach for water quality assessment and risk warning of water toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A three-dimensional (3D) macroporous reduced graphene oxide/polypyrrole (rGO/Ppy) hydrogel assembled by bacterial cells was fabricated and applied for microbial fuel cells. By taking the advantage of electroactive cell-induced bioreduction of graphene oxide and in-situ polymerization of Ppy, a facile self-assembly by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1and in-situ polymerization approach for 3D rGO/Ppy hydrogel preparation was developed. This facile one-step self-assembly process enabled the embedding of living electroactive cells inside the hydrogel electrode, which showed an interconnected 3D macroporous structures with high conductivity and biocompatibility. Electrochemical analysis indicated that the self-assembly of cell-embedding rGO/Ppy hydrogel enhanced the electrochemical activity of the bioelectrode and reduced the electron charge transfer resistance between the cells and the electrode. Impressively, extremely high power output of 3366 ± 42 mW m−2 was achieved from the MFC with cell-embedding rGO/Ppy hydrogel rGO/Ppy, which was 8.6 times of that delivered from the MFC with bare electrode. Further analysis indicated that the increased cell loading by the hydrogel and improved electrochemical activity by the rGO/Ppy composite would be the underlying mechanism for this performance improvement. This study provided a facile approach to fabricate the biocompatible and electrochemical active 3D nanocomposites for MFC, which would also be promising for performance optimization of various bioelectrochemical systems. [Display omitted] • Cell-embedding rGO/Ppy hydrogel was assembled by bacterial cells. • The biohydrogel showed high cell viability and excellent electrochemical activity. • Efficient extracellular electron transfer between cell and electrode was achieved. • Extremely high power output of 3366 ± 42 mW m−2 was achieved from the MFC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]