<i>Hanensula anomala</i> isolated from the Berkeley Pit, Butte, MT, is a metal-specific extremophile

A yeast-like extremophile organism, <i>Hansenula anomala</i>, has been isolated from the superfund site the Berkeley Pit Lake in Butte, Montana. Studies demonstrate <i>H. anomala</i> growth in some of the known Berkeley Pit Lake solutes. Microbial growth dynamics under controlled conditions were compared of <i>H. anomala</i> for multiple metal concentrations. Each solute/metal was tested separately at previously reported concentrations on the geochemistry of the Berkeley Pit lake in the first 0.2 m in spring (pH 2.5). <i>H. anomala</i> grew well with sulfur (S), MgSO₄, CaSO₄, potassium chloride (KCl), and NaSO₄ and was inhibited with FeSO₄, MnSO₄, CuSO₄, AlSO₄, or ZnSO₄. With the addition of elemental S, growth was observed for FeSO₄ indicating minimal growth rescue. PCR amplification of genomic DNA from the organism using known ribosomal primers indicates the strain to be ATCC8168 (CBS 5759). From this data, it can be concluded that <i>H. anomala</i> ATCC8168 from the Berkeley Pit is an extremophile that exhibits metal-specific growth.IMPORTANCELaboratory growth studies of a strain of <i>Hansenula anomala</i> from the Berkeley Pit have found the organism to be metal specific indicating some unique metabolism possibilities. These studies show that this strain is metal-dependent and provides information about the adaptable tolerance of organisms in superfund sites as well as giving a basis for future bioremediation development utilizing <i>H. anomala</i>.