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Bioleaching of sulfide minerals has been successfully applied worldwide for obtaining copper for decades. This technology provides about 5% of world copper production and is used as an alternative for pyrometallurgical processing of copper ores. Despite widespread of biohydrometallurgical technologies, there are a number of issues in this area, which impede the development and commercialization of bioleaching. For example, chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), the most abundant copper sulfide mineral, is refractory to biooxidati...

Acidophilic microorganisms oxidizing ferrous iron and sulfur are widely used in hydrometallurgy to extract different metals including copper, zinc, nickel, cobalt, and uranium from sulfide ores. The activity of microorganisms and screening of microbial strains capable of biooxidation of ferrous iron and sulfur compounds under different conditions, i.e. in the present of different toxicants, which may be present in treated ores, are crucial for the development of biohydrometallurgical technologies. Different factor...