Rad-ical Fungi: A Potential Avenue for Nuclear Clean-up

Synopsis

Fungi present a myriad of amazing applications including cleaning up crude oil, promoting neuroplasticity and helping trees communicate. Another compelling application can be found in the unique laboratory born from the 1986 Chernobyl accident. In this zone, local fungal colonies exhibit the resorption of radioactive nuclides. Unlike nuclear weapon tests, the fallout from this accident yielded two long-lived isotopes: Cesium-134 and Cesium-137. The uptake of these isotopes is compared using two distinct fungi via gamma ray spectroscopy and atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The results suggest a potential avenue for cleaning of nuclear waste products analogous to Cesium.