Researchers studied how three types of beneficial Bacillus bacteria can remove heavy metals like lead, cadmium, zinc, and cobalt from contaminated environments. The bacteria were most effective at capturing lead, removing up to 53% of the metal from the medium. The study showed these bacteria could potentially be used as probiotic treatments to help remove toxic metals from the body or clean up polluted soil. Microscopic analysis revealed that the metals accumulate on the bacterial cell surface, causing slight changes in bacterial shape and size.