Brown, AshleyMolinas, MargauxRoebbert, YvonneSato, AtaruAbe, MinoriWeyer, StefanBernier-Latmani, Rizlan2023-09-092023-09-092023-09-09202310.1038/s43247-023-00989-xhttps://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/200396Uranium isotopic signatures in the rock record are utilized as a proxy for past redox conditions on Earth. However, these signatures display significant variability that complicates the interpretation of specific redox conditions. Using the model uranium-reducing bacterium, Shewanella oneidensis MR-1, we show that the abundance of electron donors (e.g., labile organic carbon) controls uranium isotope fractionation, such that high electron fluxes suppress fractionation. Further, by purifying a key uranium-reducing enzyme, MtrC, we show that the magnitude of fractionation is explicitly controlled by the protein redox state. Finally, using a mathematical framework, we demonstrate that these differences in fractionation arise from the propensity for back-reaction throughout the multi-step reduction of hexavalent uranium. To improve interpretations of observed fractionations in natural environments, these findings suggest that a variable intrinsic fractionation factor should be incorporated into models of uranium isotope systematics to account for differences in electron flux caused by organic carbon availability.text::journal::journal article::research article