Working in tandem, chemically reduced iron (Fe2+) and aluminum (Al3+) in blue clays can kill pathogenic bacteria, such as these E. coli cells. Credit: ASU
“We think of this mechanism like the Trojan horse attack in ancient Greece,” said Lynda Williams, a clay-mineral scientist at ASU’s School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE). “Two elements in the clay work in tandem to kill bacteria.”
She explained, “One metallic element – chemically reduced iron, which in small amounts is required by a bacterial cell for nutrition – tricks the cell into opening its wall. Then another element – aluminum – props the cell wall open, allowing a flood of iron to enter the cell. This overabundance of iron then poisons the cell, killing it as the reduced iron becomes oxidized.”
A chance discovery of a medi...
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