Identification of novel perchloroethene-respiring microorganisms in anoxic river sediment by RNA-based stable isotope probing

The halogenated compound tetrachloroethene (perchloroethene, PCE) is a persistent contaminant of aquifers, soils and sediments. Although a number of microorganisms are known to reductively dechlorinate PCE by dehalorespiration, their diversity and community structure especially in pristine environments remain elusive. In this study, we report on the detection of a novel group of dehalorespiring bacteria that reductively dechlorinate PCE to cis -dichloroethene by RNA-based stable isotope probing. Pristine river sediment was incubated at 15°C with PCE at low aqueous concentration. Upon formation of dechlorination products, the microbial community was probed with ¹³C-labelled acetate as electron donor and carbon source. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis of density-separated 16S rRNA revealed a predominantly ¹³C-labelled bacterial population only in the microcosm with PCE in high-density gradient fractions, whereas in the control without PCE Bacteria-specific rRNA was restricted to light gradient fractions. By cloning and sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, the predominant population was identified as a novel group of bacteria within the phylum Chloroflexi . These microorganisms, designated Lahn Cluster (LC), were only distantly related to cultivated dehalorespiring Dehalococcoides spp. (92–94% sequence identity). Minor clone groups detected ¹³C-labelled and thus, potentially involved in PCE dehalorespiration, were related to β-proteobacterial Dechloromonas spp., and δ- Proteobacteria ( Geobacteraceae , Desulfobacteraceae , Desulfobulbaceae ). In contrast, clones from an ethene-producing microcosm incubated at 20°C grouped with known Dehalococcoides spp. Our results show that stable isotope probing allows targeting dehalorespiring bacteria as functional guild, and to identify novel PCE-respiring populations previously not recognized.     

Reductive dechlorination of chlorinated ethenes and 1, 2-dichloroethane by "Dehalococcoides ethenogenes" 195.

"Dehalococcoides ethenogenes" 195 can reductively dechlorinate tetrachloroethene (PCE) completely to ethene (ETH). When PCE-grown strain 195 was transferred (2% [vol/vol] inoculum) into growth medium amended with trichloroethene (TCE), cis-dichloroethene (DCE), 1,1-DCE, or 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA) as an electron acceptor, these chlorinated compounds were consumed at increasing rates over time, which indicated that growth occurred. Moreover, the number of cells increased when TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA was present. PCE, TCE, 1,1-DCE, and cis-DCE were converted mainly to vinyl chloride (VC) and then to ETH, while DCA was converted to ca. 99% ETH and 1% VC. cis-DCE was used at lower rates than PCE, TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA was used. When PCE-grown cultures were transferred to media containing VC or trans-DCE, products accumulated slowly, and there was no increase in the rate, which indicated that these two compounds did not support growth. When the intermediates in PCE dechlorination by strain 195 were monitored, TCE was detected first, followed by cis-DCE. After a lag, VC, 1,1-DCE, and trans-DCE accumulated, which is consistent with the hypothesis that cis-DCE is the precursor of these compounds. Both cis-DCE and 1,1-DCE were eventually consumed, and both of these compounds could be considered intermediates in PCE dechlorination, whereas the small amount of trans-DCE that was produced persisted. Cultures grown on TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA could immediately dechlorinate PCE, which indicated that PCE reductive dehalogenase activity was constitutive when these electron acceptors were used.     

Interspecies hydrogen transfer in co-cultures of methanol-utilizing acidogens and sulfate-reducing or methanogenic bacteria

Abstract The metabolism of methanol by acidogenic bacteria ( Butyribacterium methylotrophicum, Sporomusa ovata and Acetobacterium woodii ) was studied in pure culture and in defined mixed cultures with sulfate-reducing bacteria ( Desulfovibrio vulgaris ) or methanogenic bacteria ( Methanobrevibacter arboriphilus strain AZ). In the mixed cultures, less acids (acetate and/or butyrate) were formed per unit methanol converted than in pure cultures. In these mixed cultures, a significant production of sulfide or methane was observed despite the inability of the sulfate reducer and the methanogen to use methanol as an energy substrate. These results are explained in terms of interspecies hydrogen transfer between the acidogens (converting part of the methanol to 1 CO₂ and 3 H₂) and the Desulfovibrio or Methanobrevibacter species. The bioenergetic aspects of this process and its ecological implications are discussed.     

Influence of different electron donors and acceptors on dehalorespiration of tetrachloroethene by Desulfitobacterium frappieri TCE1

Strain TCE1, a strictly anaerobic bacterium that can grow by reductive dechlorination of tetrachloroethene (PCE) and trichloroethene (TCE), was isolated by selective enrichment from a PCE-dechlorinating chemostat mixed culture. Strain TCE1 is a gram-positive, motile, curved rod-shaped organism that is 2 to 4 by 0.6 to 0.8 microm and has approximately six lateral flagella. The pH and temperature optima for growth are 7.2 and 35 degrees C, respectively. On the basis of a comparative 16S rRNA sequence analysis, this bacterium was identified as a new strain of Desulfitobacterium frappieri, because it exhibited 99.7% relatedness to the D. frappieri type strain, strain PCP-1. Growth with H(2), formate, L-lactate, butyrate, crotonate, or ethanol as the electron donor depends on the availability of an external electron acceptor. Pyruvate and serine can also be used fermentatively. Electron donors (except formate and H(2)) are oxidized to acetate and CO(2). When L-lactate is the growth substrate, strain TCE1 can use the following electron acceptors: PCE and TCE (to produce cis-1,2-dichloroethene), sulfite and thiosulfate (to produce sulfide), nitrate (to produce nitrite), and fumarate (to produce succinate). Strain TCE1 is not able to reductively dechlorinate 3-chloro-4-hydroxyphenylacetate. The growth yields of the newly isolated bacterium when PCE is the electron acceptor are similar to those obtained for other dehalorespiring anaerobes (e.g., Desulfitobacterium sp. strain PCE1 and Desulfitobacterium hafniense) and the maximum specific reductive dechlorination rates are 4 to 16 times higher (up to 1.4 micromol of chloride released. min(-1). mg of protein(-1)). Dechlorination of PCE and TCE is an inducible process. In PCE-limited chemostat cultures of strain TCE1, dechlorination is strongly inhibited by sulfite but not by other alternative electron acceptors, such as fumarate or nitrate.     

A highly purified enrichment culture couples the reductive dechlorination of tetrachloroethene to growth.

A microscopically pure enrichment culture of a gram-negative anaerobic bacterium, in the present article referred to as PER-K23, was isolated from an anaerobic packed-bed column in which tetrachloroethene (PCE) was reductively transformed to ethane via trichloroethene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cis-1,2-DCE), chloroethene, and ethene. PER-K23 catalyzes the dechlorination of PCE via TCE to cis-1,2-DCE and couples this reductive dechlorination to growth. H2 and formate were the only electron donors that supported growth with PCE or TCE as an electron acceptor. The culture did not grow in the absence of PCE or TCE. Neither O2, NO3-, NO2-, SO4(2-), SO3(2-), S2O3(2-), S, nor CO2 could replace PCE or TCE as an electron acceptor with H2 as an electron donor. Also, organic electron acceptors such as acetoin, acetol, dimethyl sulfoxide, fumarate, and trimethylamine N-oxide and chlorinated ethanes, DCEs, and chloroethene were not utilized. PER-K23 was not able to grow fermentatively on any of the organic compounds tested. Transferring the culture to a rich medium revealed that a contaminant was still present. Dechlorination was optimal between pH 6.8 and 7.6 and a temperature of 25 to 35 degrees C. H2 consumption was paralleled by chloride production, PCE degradation, cis-1,2-DCE formation, and growth of PER-K23. Electron balances showed that all electrons derived from H2 or formate consumption were recovered in dechlorination products and biomass. Exponential growth could be achieved only in gently shaken cultures.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Reductive Dechlorination of Chlorinated Ethenes and 1,2-Dichloroethane by “Dehalococcoides ethenogenes” 195

“Dehalococcoides ethenogenes” 195 can reductively dechlorinate tetrachloroethene (PCE) completely to ethene (ETH). When PCE-grown strain 195 was transferred (2% [vol/vol] inoculum) into growth medium amended with trichloroethene (TCE), cis-dichloroethene (DCE), 1,1-DCE, or 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA) as an electron acceptor, these chlorinated compounds were consumed at increasing rates over time, which indicated that growth occurred. Moreover, the number of cells increased when TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA was present. PCE, TCE, 1,1-DCE, and cis-DCE were converted mainly to vinyl chloride (VC) and then to ETH, while DCA was converted to ca. 99% ETH and 1% VC. cis-DCE was used at lower rates than PCE, TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA was used. When PCE-grown cultures were transferred to media containing VC or trans-DCE, products accumulated slowly, and there was no increase in the rate, which indicated that these two compounds did not support growth. When the intermediates in PCE dechlorination by strain 195 were monitored, TCE was detected first, followed by cis-DCE. After a lag, VC, 1,1-DCE, and trans-DCE accumulated, which is consistent with the hypothesis that cis-DCE is the precursor of these compounds. Both cis-DCE and 1,1-DCE were eventually consumed, and both of these compounds could be considered intermediates in PCE dechlorination, whereas the small amount of trans-DCE that was produced persisted. Cultures grown on TCE, 1,1-DCE, or DCA could immediately dechlorinate PCE, which indicated that PCE reductive dehalogenase activity was constitutive when these electron acceptors were used.     

Biological reductive dechlorination of tetrachloroethylene and trichloroethylene to ethylene under methanogenic conditions

A biological process for remediation of groundwater contaminated with tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE) can only be applied if the transformation products are environmentally acceptable. Studies with enrichment cultures of PCE- and TCE-degrading microorganisms provide evidence that, under methanogenic conditions, mixed cultures are able to completely dechlorinate PCE and TCE to ethylene, a product which is environmentally acceptable. Radiotracer studies with [14C]PCE indicated that [14C]ethylene was the terminal product; significant conversion to 14CO2 or 14CH4 was not observed. The rate-limiting step in the pathway appeared to be conversion of vinyl chloride to ethylene. To sustain reductive dechlorination of PCE and TCE, it was necessary to supply an electron donor; methanol was the most effective, although hydrogen, formate, acetate, and glucose also served. Studies with the inhibitor 2-bromoethanesulfonate suggested that methanogens played a key role in the observed biotransformations of PCE and TCE.     

Biological reductive dechlorination of tetrachloroethylene and trichloroethylene to ethylene under methanogenic conditions.

A biological process for remediation of groundwater contaminated with tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE) can only be applied if the transformation products are environmentally acceptable. Studies with enrichment cultures of PCE- and TCE-degrading microorganisms provide evidence that, under methanogenic conditions, mixed cultures are able to completely dechlorinate PCE and TCE to ethylene, a product which is environmentally acceptable. Radiotracer studies with [14C]PCE indicated that [14C]ethylene was the terminal product; significant conversion to 14CO2 or 14CH4 was not observed. The rate-limiting step in the pathway appeared to be conversion of vinyl chloride to ethylene. To sustain reductive dechlorination of PCE and TCE, it was necessary to supply an electron donor; methanol was the most effective, although hydrogen, formate, acetate, and glucose also served. Studies with the inhibitor 2-bromoethanesulfonate suggested that methanogens played a key role in the observed biotransformations of PCE and TCE.     

Microbial composition of chlorinated ethene-degrading cultures dominated by Dehalococcoides

The community composition of microbial cultures degrading tetrachloroethene (PCE), trichloroethene (TCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cDCE) and vinyl chloride (VC) to ethene was studied. A combination of PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that all cultures contained Dehalococcoides populations, but that the populations of other organisms varied widely. Based on the sequences of cloned 16S rRNA genes, real-time PCR methods were developed for several of these phylotypes affiliated with the putative dechlorinators Sulfurospirillum and Geobacter, the putative methanogens Methanomethylovorans, Methanomicrobiales, Methanosaeta and Methanosarcina, the putative acetogens Acetobacterium, Spirochaetes, and Sporomusa, and the putative fermenters Bacteroidetes, Syntrophus, and Syntrophobacter. These novel quantitative PCR methods were then used to estimate relative abundances of each phylotype in several individual cultures maintained on each chlorinated ethene. Dehalococcoides populations were the dominant phylotypes assayed in most KB-1 cultures, agreeing with the DGGE and cloning results. A Geobacter phylotype was also strongly represented in most PCE and TCE cultures, but not in cDCE or VC cultures, suggesting a possible role for this organism as a PCE-to-cDCE dechlorinator. The Sulfurospirillum phylotype was estimated to comprise a minor fraction of 16S rRNA gene copies and did not appear to have an important role in dechlorination.     

Characterization of hydrogenase and reductive dehalogenase activities of Dehalococcoides ethenogenes strain 195

Dehalococcoides ethenogenes strain 195 reductively dechlorinates tetrachloroethene (PCE) and trichloroethene (TCE) to vinyl chloride and ethene using H2 as an electron donor. PCE- and TCE-reductive dehalogenase (RD) activities were mainly membrane associated, whereas only about 20% of the hydrogenase activity was membrane associated. Experiments with methyl viologen (MV) were consistent with a periplasmic location for the RDs or a component feeding electrons to them. The protonophore uncoupler tetrachlorosalicylanilide did not inhibit reductive dechlorination in cells incubated with H2 and PCE and partially restored activity in cells incubated with the ATPase inhibitor N,N'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide. Benzyl viologen or diquat (Eo' approximately -360 mV) supported reductive dechlorination of PCE or TCE at rates comparable to MV (-450 mV) in cell extracts.     

Reductive dechlorination of Tri- and tetrachloroethylenes depends on transition from aerobic to anaerobic conditions.

Aerobic enrichment cultures from contaminated groundwaters dechlorinated trichloroethylene (TCE) (14.6 mg/liter; 111 mumol/liter) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) (16.2 mg/liter; 98 mumol/liter) reductively within 4 days after the transition from aerobic to anaerobic conditions. The transformation products were equimolar amounts of cis-1,2-dichloroethylene and traces of 1,1-dichloroethylene. No other chlorinated product and no methane were detected. The change was accompanied by the release of sulfide, which caused a decrease in the redox potential from 0 to -150 mV. In sterile control experiments, sulfide led to the abiotic formation of traces of 1,1-dichloroethylene without cis-1,2-dichloroethylene production. The reductive dechlorination of PCE via TCE depended on these specific transition conditions after consumption of the electron acceptor oxygen or nitrate. Repeated feeding of TCE or PCE to cultures after the change to anaerobic conditions yielded no further dechlorination. Only aerobic subcultures with an air/liquid ratio of 1:4 maintained dechlorination activities; anaerobic subcultures showed no transformation. Bacteria from noncontaminated sites showed no reduction under the same conditions.     

Reductive dechlorination of Tri- and tetrachloroethylenes depends on transition from aerobic to anaerobic conditions

Aerobic enrichment cultures from contaminated groundwaters dechlorinated trichloroethylene (TCE) (14.6 mg/liter; 111 mumol/liter) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) (16.2 mg/liter; 98 mumol/liter) reductively within 4 days after the transition from aerobic to anaerobic conditions. The transformation products were equimolar amounts of cis-1,2-dichloroethylene and traces of 1,1-dichloroethylene. No other chlorinated product and no methane were detected. The change was accompanied by the release of sulfide, which caused a decrease in the redox potential from 0 to -150 mV. In sterile control experiments, sulfide led to the abiotic formation of traces of 1,1-dichloroethylene without cis-1,2-dichloroethylene production. The reductive dechlorination of PCE via TCE depended on these specific transition conditions after consumption of the electron acceptor oxygen or nitrate. Repeated feeding of TCE or PCE to cultures after the change to anaerobic conditions yielded no further dechlorination. Only aerobic subcultures with an air/liquid ratio of 1:4 maintained dechlorination activities; anaerobic subcultures showed no transformation. Bacteria from noncontaminated sites showed no reduction under the same conditions.     

Reductive dechlorination of perchloroethylene and the role of methanogens

Abstract Perchloroethylene (PCE) was reductively dechlorinated to trichloroethylene in a 10% anaerobic sewage sludge. About 80% of the initially added PCE (300 nmol) was dechlorinated within three weeks. The calculated rates were 250 nM and 445 nM · day⁻¹ during the first and second weeks of incubation, respectively. The depletion of PCE varied in sludges obtained from different sources.
The role of methanogenesis in the dechlorination of PCE was evaluated by inhibiting the methanogens by addition of bromoethane sulfonic acid, a potent methanogenic inhibitor. Dechlorination of PCE was significantly inhibited in sludges amended with the inhibitor. Almost 41–48% less PCE was dechlorinated in sludges containing 5 mM BESA, indicating a relation between the two processes (methanogenesis and dechlorination). Direct proof that methanogens can transform chlorinated aliphatic compounds was obtained using axenic cultures of acetate-cleaving methanogens. Methanosarcina sp , originally isolated from a chlorophenol degrading consortium, showed significantly higher dechlorinating activity as compared to Ms. mazei . Based on these studies and other recently reported observations, it appears that methanogens/methanogenesis play an important role in the anaerobic dechlorination of chlorinated aliphatics such as PCE.     

Kinetics of chlorinated ethylene dehalogenation under methanogenic conditions

Kinetics were determined for methanogenic activity and chlorinated ethylene dehalogenation by a methanol-enriched, anaerobic sediment consortium. The culture reductively dechlorinated perchloroethylene (PCE) to trichloroethylene (TCE), 1,1-dichloroethylene (1,1-DCE), vinylchloride (VC), and ethylene and ethane. The absence : of methanol or the addition of 2-bromoethanesulfonic. acid in the presence of methanol suppressed both methanogenic activity and dechlorination. In contrast, acetate production continued in the presence of 2-bromoethanesulfonic acid. These results suggest that dechlorination was strongly linked to methane formation and not to acetate production. A kinetic model, developed to describe both methanogenesis and dechlorination, successfully predicted experimentally measured concentrations of biomass, methane, substrate, and chlorinated ethylenes. The average maximum specific dehalogenation rates for PCE, TCE, 1,1-DCE, and VC were 0.9 +/- 0.6, 0.4 +/- 0.1, 12 +/- 0.1, and 2.5 +/- 1.7 mumol contaminant/ g. DW/day, respectively. This pattern for dechlorination rates is distinctly different than that reported for transition metal cofactors, where rates drop by approximately one order of magnitude as each successive chlorine is removed. The experimental results and kinetic analysis suggest that it will be impractical to targeting methanol consuming methanogenic organisms for in situ ground-water restoration. (c) 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Identification of a microorganism that links its growth to the reductive dechlorination of 2,3,5,6-chlorobiphenyl

Anaerobic bacteria reductively dechlorinate polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in aquatic sediments, but these microorganisms remain uncultured and, until now, unidentified. Through denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S rDNA from a highly enriched ortho -PCB dechlorinating culture, the growth of a single microorganism was shown to be dependent upon the presence and dechlorination of 2,3,5,6-tetrachlorobiphenyl. This is the first identification of a microorganism that catalyses the reductive dechlorination of a PCB. The organism, bacterium o -17, has high sequence similarity with the green non-sulphur bacteria and with a group that includes Dehalococcoides ethenogenes . Bacterium o -17 required acetate for dechlorination and growth. H₂:CO₂ (80:20 at 101 kPa) did not support dechlorination or growth of the dechlorinator. Archaeal 16S rDNA was not detected in actively dechlorinating bromoethanesulphonate-treated non-methanogenic cultures, which indicated that methanogenic Archaea were not required for dechlorination. The consistent association with dechlorinating activity combined with high similarity to other known dechlorinating microorganisms indicates that bacterium o -17 catalyses the reductive ortho -dechlorination of 2,3,5,6-tetrachlorobiphenyl.     

Characterization of two tetrachloroethene-reducing,acetate-oxidizing anaerobic bacteria and their description as Desulfuromonas michiganensis sp. nov

Two tetrachlorethene (PCE)-dechlorinating populations, designated strains BB1 and BRS1, were isolated from pristine river sediment and chloroethene-contaminated aquifer material, respectively. PCE-to-cis-1,2-dichloroethene-dechlorinating activity could be transferred in defined basal salts medium with acetate as the electron donor and PCE as the electron acceptor. Taxonomic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing placed both isolates within the Desulfuromonas cluster in the delta subdivision of the Proteobacteria. PCE was dechlorinated at rates of at least 139 nmol min(-1) mg of protein(-1) at pH values between 7.0 and 7.5 and temperatures between 25 and 30 degrees C. Dechlorination also occurred at 10 degrees C. The electron donors that supported dechlorination included acetate, lactate, pyruvate, succinate, malate, and fumarate but not hydrogen, formate, ethanol, propionate, or sulfide. Growth occurred with malate or fumarate alone, whereas oxidation of the other electron donors depended strictly on the presence of fumarate, malate, ferric iron, sulfur, PCE, or TCE as an electron acceptor. Nitrate, sulfate, sulfite, thiosulfate, and other chlorinated compounds were not used as electron acceptors. Sulfite had a strong inhibitory effect on growth and dechlorination. Alternate electron acceptors (e.g., fumarate or ferric iron) did not inhibit PCE dechlorination and were consumed concomitantly. The putative fumarate, PCE, and ferric iron reductases were induced by their respective substrates and were not constitutively present. Sulfide was required for growth. Both strains tolerated high concentrations of PCE, and dechlorination occurred in the presence of free-phase PCE (dense non-aqueous-phase liquids). Repeated growth with acetate and fumarate as substrates yielded a BB1 variant that had lost the ability to dechlorinate PCE. Due to the 16S rRNA gene sequence differences with the closest relatives and the unique phenotypic characteristics, we propose that the new isolates are members of a new species, Desulfuromonas michiganensis, within the Desulfuromonas cluster of the Geobacteraceae.     

Dependence of tetrachloroethylene dechlorination on methanogenic substrate consumption by Methanosarcina sp. strain DCM.

Tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene, PCE) is a suspected carcinogen and a common groundwater contaminant. Although PCE is highly resistant to aerobic biodegradation, it is subject to reductive dechlorination reactions in a variety of anaerobic habitats. The data presented here clearly establish that axenic cultures of Methanosarcina sp. strain DCM dechlorinate PCE to trichloroethylene and that this is a biological reaction. Growth on methanol, acetate, methylamine, and trimethylamine resulted in PCE dechlorination. The reductive dechlorination of PCE occurred only during methanogenesis, and no dechlorination was noted when CH4 production ceased. There was a clear dependence of the extent of PCE dechlorination on the amount of methanogenic substrate (methanol) consumed. The amount of trichloroethylene formed per millimole of CH4 formed remained essentially constant for a 20-fold range of methanol concentrations and for growth on acetate, methylamine, and trimethylamine. These results suggest that the reducing equivalents for PCE dechlorination are derived from CH4 biosynthesis and that the extent of chloroethylene dechlorination can be enhanced by stimulating methanogenesis. It is proposed that electrons transferred during methanogenesis are diverted to PCE by a reduced electron carrier involved in methane formation.     

Reductive dechlorination of chlorinated ethene DNAPLs by a culture enriched from contaminated groundwater

A microbial culture enriched from a trichloroethene-contaminated groundwater aquifer reductively dechlorinated trichloroethene (TCE) and tetrachloroethene (PCE) to ethene. Initial PCE dechlorination rate studies indicated a first-order dependence with respect to substrate at low PCE concentrations, and a zero-order dependence at high concentrations. Studies of TCE and vinyl chloride (VC) dechlorination indicated a first-order dependence at all substrate concentrations. VC had little or no effect on the initial rate of TCE dechlorination. With subsaturating concentrations of chlorinated ethenes, nearly stoichiometric amounts of the toxic intermediate vinyl chloride accumulated prior to its dechlorination to ethene. In contrast, under saturating conditions, in which a dense, nonaqueous-phase liquid existed in equilibrium with the aqueous phase, the chlorinated ethene was dechlorinated to ethene, at a rapid rate, with the accumulation of relatively small amounts of chlorinated intermediates.     

Sodium bioenergetics in methanogens and acetogens

Abstract Recent investigations with Methanosarcina barkeri elucidated the role of sodium ions in the energy metabolism of methanogenic bacteria and provided evidence for a novel mechanism of energy transduction with Na⁺ as the coupling ion. During methanogenesis from methanol, an eletrochemical sodium gradient generated by a Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter is used as the driving force for the thermodynamically unfavourable oxidation of methanol to the formal redox level of formaldehyde. During methanogenesis from H₂+ CO₂, the reverse reaction, the reduction of formaldehyde to the level of methanol, is accompanied by a primary, electron transport-driven sodium extrusion. Acetogenesis from H₂+ CO₂ as carried out by Acetobacterium woodii is a sodium-dependent process and is accompanied by the generation of a transmembrane sodium gradient with the reduction of formaldehyde to the level of methanol as the sodium-dependent step.