Environmental Biotechnology Laboratory

The Environmental Biotechnology Laboratory focuses on research and development of biotechnologies for metal recovery and bioremediation using microorganisms. To this end, it has developed bacterial leaching processes for minerals and concentrates from different mining units in Peru. In the area of bioremediation, work has been done on problems involving mercury, selenium, cadmium, cyanide, and arsenic. Studies have also been conducted on sulfate-reducing bacteria in corrosion problems and the development of bioelectricity from mining waste. Research is currently being conducted on the metabolism of microorganisms isolated from mining environments to find bioproducts that can solve current problems in health and other areas. Finally, this laboratory provides training services to universities and companies in this area. This unit is important because it has been a pioneer in the country in providing services related to bacterial leaching and bioremediation to mining companies in the country. It has also developed techniques that allow the isolation of microorganisms present in the biodiversity of mining environments and that may have various applications.