Few studies have focused on biosorption by microorganisms under culture conditions. To explore the biosorption of uranium by Saccharomyces cerevisiae under culture conditions, the S. cerevisiae growth curve, biosorption capacity and surface interaction under batch culture conditions were investigated in this study. The growth curve showed that uranium (<300 mg L-1) did not markedly inhibit the growth of S. cerevisiae under short culture time. The maximum scavenging efficiency reached 92.4% under 6-10 h culture conditions, and the adsorption quantity of S. cerevisiae increased with initial uranium concentration. Centrifuging and drying after biosorption caused the volume reduction ratio to reach 99%. Scanning electron microscope results demonstrated that uranium interacted with yeast cell surfaces, as well as culture medium, and produced uranium precipitate on cell surfaces. Fourier transformed infrared spectra revealed that cell walls were the major sorption sites, and -O-H, -C=0 and -PO2- contributed to the major binding groups. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.