The genome of the Gram‐positive metal‐ and sulfate‐reducing bacterium Desulfotomaculum reducens strain MI‐1 |
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| Authors: | Pilar Junier Thomas Junier Sheila Podell David R. Sims John C. Detter Athanasios Lykidis Cliff S. Han Nicholas S. Wigginton Terry Gaasterland Rizlan Bernier‐Latmani |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Environmental Microbiology Laboratory, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland.;2. Present addresses: Laboratory of Microbiology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel 2000, Switzerland;3. Computational Evolutionary Genomics Group, University of Geneva, Geneva 1211, Switzerland.;4. Marine Biological Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.;5. DOE Joint Genome Institute, Bioscience Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA.;6. DOE‐Joint Genome Institute, Genome Biology Program, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, USA.;7. Science, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington DC, USA. |
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| Abstract: | Spore‐forming, Gram‐positive sulfate‐reducing bacteria (SRB) represent a group of SRB that dominates the deep subsurface as well as niches in which resistance to oxygen and dessication is an advantage. Desulfotomaculum reducens strain MI‐1 is one of the few cultured representatives of that group with a complete genome sequence available. The metabolic versatility of this organism is reflected in the presence of genes encoding for the oxidation of various electron donors, including three‐ and four‐carbon fatty acids and alcohols. Synteny in genes involved in sulfate reduction across all four sequenced Gram‐positive SRB suggests a distinct sulfate‐reduction mechanism for this group of bacteria. Based on the genomic information obtained for sulfate reduction in D. reducens, the transfer of electrons to the sulfite and APS reductases is proposed to take place via the quinone pool and heterodisulfide reductases respectively. In addition, both H2‐evolving and H2‐consuming cytoplasmic hydrogenases were identified in the genome, pointing to potential cytoplasmic H2 cycling in the bacterium. The mechanism of metal reduction remains unknown. |
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