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Thread: B12 in cleaning up soil contaminants

  1. #1
    veganblue's Avatar
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    Default B12 in cleaning up soil contaminants

    I apologise in advance for some of the language used below, but what the study is showing is the use of specific molecules (metalloporphyrinogens) to degrade some of the nastier chemicals that humans have released into the environment.

    While not being diet related, it could have some relation to the presence of chlorine based pollutants in our immediate environment and the reduction in B12 levels as a result of their 'exhaustion'.

    Cobalt is one of the transition elemental metals which means that it has enough electrons to fill the d-orbital (electrons are arranged in energy layers called orbitals that have specific predictable characteristics) which allows for a larger structure to form around it with the transition element - in this case, cobalt, in the heart. Interactions with this molecule weakens the bonds in other molecules which allows for the 'catalytic' degradation of that molecule to a lower energy state; largely without the degradation of the B12 molecule - of which there are a range of structures or analogues.

    It would be interesting to find the structural integrity of B12 in the longer term. Fascinating molecule.


    Use of Nanosized Catalysts for Transformation of Chloro-Organic Pollutants
    I S H A I D R O R , * D A N A B A R A M , A N D B R I A N B E R K O W I T Z
    Department of Environmental Sciences and Energy Research,
    Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
    Source: Journal of the Environment, Science and Technology. 2005, 39,1283-1290

    A new method to transform anthropogenic, chloro-organic compounds (COC) by use of nanosized molecular catalysts immobilized in sol-gel matrixes is presented. COC represent a serious threat to soil and groundwater quality. Metalloporphyrinogens are nanometer sized molecules that are known to catalyze degradation of COC by reduction reactions. In the current study, metalloporphyrinogens were immobilized in sol-gel matrixes with pore throat diameters of nanometers. The catalytic activity of the matrix arrays for anaerobic reduction of tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), and carbon tetrachloride (CT) was examined. Experiments were performed under conditions pertinent to groundwater systems, with titanium citrate and zero-valent iron as electron donors. All chloroorganic compounds were reduced in the presence of several sol-gel-metalloporphyrinogen hybrids (heterogeneous catalysts). For example, cobalt-5,10,15,20-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-21 H,23 H-porphine (TP(OH)P-Co) and cyanocobalamin (vitamin B12) reduced CT concentrations to less than 5% of their initial values in a matter of hours.
    Cyanocobalamin was found to reduce PCE to trace amounts in less than 48 h and TCE to less than 25% of its initial concentration in 144 h. The reactions were compared to their homogeneous (without sol-gel matrix) analogues.
    The reduction activity of COC for the homogeneous and heterogeneous systems ranged between similar reactivity in some cases to lower reduction rates for the heterogeneous system. These lower rates are, however, compensated by the ability to encapsulate and reuse the catalyst. Experiments with cyanocobalamin showed that the catalyst could be reused over at least 12 successive cycles of 24 h each.
    "if compassion is extreme, then call me an extremist"

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    Default Re: B12 in cleaning up soil contaminants

    This WAS a bit technical but I found that when I turned my computer screen sideways it started to make more sense.

    I know that some farmers feed cobalt to animals to boost their B12 production since the soil is deficient in some areas. Is the above inferring a cobalt deficiency in soil or a B12 deficiency in soil or a B12-producing bacteria deficiency in soil? AND, are certain pollutants combining with the cobalt or the B12?
    Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein

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    veganblue's Avatar
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    Default Re: B12 in cleaning up soil contaminants

    It squeezed my head to be able to read it also - I think that they are talking about using manufactured B12 as a detoxifying catalyst in a gel matrix that is applied to the soil. Not sure about the chemical mechanics of it or how it will work - but B12 was one of a dozen different nanoparticles referred to.
    It is about cleaning contaminated soil from organochlorides - I can't think of any off the top of my head - but I was interested to note that B12 had a catalytic activity and does not degrade as readily as I expected. Maybe it doesn't degrade but is excreted in large amounts due to our high doses of environmental contaminants, especially heavy metals?
    "if compassion is extreme, then call me an extremist"

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