The research team led by Professor Yuan Xianzheng from the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Shandong University has recently achieved a significant breakthrough in biohybrid catalytic nitrogen fixation. Their relevant study, "Light-Independent Fe3O4-Methanosarcina acetivorans Biohybrid Enhances Nitrogen Fixation and Methanogenesis", has been published in Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS), one of the most authoritative journals in the field of chemistry. Notably, the School of Environmental Science and Engineering at Shandong University serves as both the primary affiliation for the first author and the sole corresponding author institution for this research.

Currently, the traditional model of agricultural development has led to increasingly severe global soil pollution issues, creating an urgent need to develop a new sustainable agricultural paradigm. Biological nitrogen fixation technology has emerged as a crucial component for sustainable agricultural development. To address this, the research team has developed a light-independent biohybrid system that integrates inorganic Fe3O4 nanoparticles with a specific soil microorganism—methanogenic archaea (Methanosarcina acetivorans C2A). This biohybrid significantly enhances both nitrogen fixation and methane production capabilities under anaerobic, light-independent conditions. The biohybrid system facilitates directional electron transfer through Fe3O4, improving ATP synthesis and nitrogenase function without solar energy input. These findings provide a novel and sustainable approach to nitrogen fixation, demonstrating significant potential for applications in sustainable agricultural development.

Fig 1 The biohybrid promotes methanogenesis and nitrogen fixation in methanogens without solar energy input

Over the past few years, Prof. Yuan Xianzheng's research group has made significant strides in the field of biohybrid catalysis, culminating in a series of high-impact publications, including a recent study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) (2024, 121: e2317058121). The above research work has been strongly supported by the National Science Foundation of China, the Intramural Joint Program Fund of the State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, and the Instrument Improvement Funds of the Shandong University Public Technology Platform.