著者
Shawn E. McGlynn
出版者
日本微生物生態学会 / 日本土壌微生物学会 / Taiwan Society of Microbial Ecology / 植物微生物研究会
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.ME16166, (Released:2017-03-17)
被引用文献数
96

Anaerobic methane oxidation in archaea is often presented to operate via a pathway of “reverse methanogenesis”. However, if the cumulative reactions of a methanogen are run in reverse there is no apparent way to conserve energy. Recent findings suggest that chemiosmotic coupling enzymes known from their use in methylotrophic and acetoclastic methanogens—in addition to unique terminal reductases—biochemically facilitate energy conservation during complete CH4 oxidation to CO2. The apparent enzyme modularity of these organisms highlights how microbes can arrange their energy metabolisms to accommodate diverse chemical potentials in various ecological niches, even in the extreme case of utilizing “reverse” thermodynamic potentials.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Katsumi Matsuura Marcus Tank Shawn E. McGlynn Vera Thiel Shin Haruta
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology · The Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.ME18041, (Released:2018-11-23)
被引用文献数
21

The phylum Aquificae comprises chemolithoautotrophic thermophilic to hyperthermophilic bacteria, in which the nitrogenase reductase gene (nifH) has been reported. However, nitrogen-fixing activity has not yet been demonstrated in members of this deeply branching bacterial phylum. We isolated two thermophilic diazotrophic strains from chemosynthetic microbial communities in slightly alkaline hot springs (≥70°C) in Nakabusa, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. A phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA genes identified these strains as members of the genus Hydrogenobacter within Aquificae. Their NifH sequences showed 96.5 and 97.4% amino acid sequence identities to that from Hydrogenobacter thermophilus TK-6. Nitrogenase activity, measured by acetylene reduction, was confirmed in both strains at 70°C. These novel strains grew under semi-aerobic conditions by using CO2 as the sole carbon source and N2 as the sole nitrogen source in media containing hydrogen and/or thiosulfate. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of active nitrogen fixation in thermophilic bacteria at 70°C and in the phylum Aquificae.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Vera Thiel Katsumi Matsuura Shawn E. McGlynn Shin Haruta
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology · The Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.ME18030, (Released:2018-11-07)
被引用文献数
23

Chemosynthetic microbial communities develop and form dense cell aggregates in slightly alkaline sulfidic hot springs in the temperature range of 70–86°C at Nakabusa, Japan. Nitrogenase activity has recently been detected in the microbial communities collected. To identify possible members capable of nitrogen fixation, we examined the diversities of 16S rRNA and nitrogenase reductase (NifH) gene sequences in four types of chemosynthetic communities with visually different colors and thicknesses. The results of a 16S rRNA gene analysis indicated that all four microbial communities had similar bacterial constituents; the phylum Aquificae was the dominant member, followed in abundance by Thermodesulfobacteria, Firmicutes, and Thermotogae. Most of the NifH sequences were related to sequences reported in hydrothermal vents and terrestrial hot springs. The results of a phylogenetic analysis of NifH sequences revealed diversity in this gene among the communities collected, distributed within 7 phylogenetic groups. NifH sequences affiliated with Aquificae (Hydrogenobacter/Thermocrinis) and Firmicutes (Caldicellulosiruptor) were abundant. At least two different energy metabolic pathways appeared to be related to nitrogen fixation in the communities analyzed; aerobic sulfur/hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria in Aquificae and fermentative bacteria in Firmicutes. The metabolic characteristics of these two dominant phyla differed from those previously inferred from nitrogenase activity assays on chemosynthetic communities, which were associated with hydrogen-dependent autotrophic sulfate reduction. These assays may correspond to the observed NifH sequences that are distantly related to the known species of Thermodesulfovibrio sp. (Nitrospirae) detected in the present study. The activities of nitrogen-fixing organisms in communities may depend on redox states as well as the availability of electron donors, acceptors, and carbon sources.
著者
Lewis M. Ward Airi Idei Mayuko Nakagawa Yuichiro Ueno Woodward W. Fischer Shawn E. McGlynn
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology · The Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.ME19017, (Released:2019-08-14)
被引用文献数
37

Hydrothermal systems, including terrestrial hot springs, contain diverse geochemical conditions that vary over short spatial scales due to progressive interactions between reducing hydrothermal fluids, the oxygenated atmosphere, and, in some cases, seawater. At Jinata Onsen on Shikinejima Island, Japan, an intertidal, anoxic, iron-rich hot spring mixes with the oxygenated atmosphere and seawater over short spatial scales, creating diverse chemical potentials and redox pairs over a distance of ~10 m. We characterized geochemical conditions along the outflow of Jinata Onsen as well as the microbial communities present in biofilms, mats, and mineral crusts along its traverse using 16S rRNA gene amplicon and genome-resolved shotgun metagenomic sequencing. Microbial communities significantly changed downstream as temperatures and dissolved iron concentrations decreased and dissolved oxygen increased. Biomass was more limited near the spring source than downstream, and primary productivity appeared to be fueled by the oxidation of ferrous iron and molecular hydrogen by members of Zetaproteobacteria and Aquificae. The microbial community downstream was dominated by oxygenic Cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria are abundant and active even at ferrous iron concentrations of ~150 μM, which challenges the idea that iron toxicity limited cyanobacterial expansion in Precambrian oceans. Several novel lineages of Bacteria are also present at Jinata Onsen, including previously uncharacterized members of the phyla Chloroflexi and Calditrichaeota, positioning Jinata Onsen as a valuable site for the future characterization of these clades.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Katsumi Matsuura Marcus Tank Shawn E. McGlynn Vera Thiel Shin Haruta
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology / Taiwan Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Plant Microbe Interactions / Japanese Society for Extremophiles
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.33, no.4, pp.394-401, 2018 (Released:2018-12-28)
参考文献数
48
被引用文献数
7 21

The phylum Aquificae comprises chemolithoautotrophic thermophilic to hyperthermophilic bacteria, in which the nitrogenase reductase gene (nifH) has been reported. However, nitrogen-fixing activity has not yet been demonstrated in members of this deeply branching bacterial phylum. We isolated two thermophilic diazotrophic strains from chemosynthetic microbial communities in slightly alkaline hot springs (≥70°C) in Nakabusa, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. A phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA genes identified these strains as members of the genus Hydrogenobacter within Aquificae. Their NifH sequences showed 96.5 and 97.4% amino acid sequence identities to that from Hydrogenobacter thermophilus TK-6. Nitrogenase activity, measured by acetylene reduction, was confirmed in both strains at 70°C. These novel strains grew under semi-aerobic conditions by using CO2 as the sole carbon source and N2 as the sole nitrogen source in media containing hydrogen and/or thiosulfate. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of active nitrogen fixation in thermophilic bacteria at 70°C and in the phylum Aquificae.
著者
Lucia Gastoldi Lewis M. Ward Mayuko Nakagawa Mario Giordano Shawn E. McGlynn
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology / Taiwan Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Plant Microbe Interactions / Japanese Society for Extremophiles
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.36, no.2, pp.ME20145, 2021 (Released:2021-05-25)
参考文献数
62
被引用文献数
2

We investigated variations in cell growth and ATP Sulfurylase (ATPS) activity when two cyanobacterial strains—Synechocystis sp. PCC6803 and Synechococcus sp. WH7803—were grown in conventional media, and media with low ammonium, low sulfate and a high CO2/low O2 atmosphere. In both organisms, a transition and adaptation to the reconstructed environmental media resulted in a decrease in ATPS activity. This variation appears to be decoupled from growth rate, suggesting the enzyme is not rate-limiting in S assimilation and raising questions about the role of ATPS redox regulation in cell physiology and throughout Earth history.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Shin Haruta Shawn E. McGlynn Vera Thiel Katsumi Matsuura
出版者
日本微生物生態学会・日本土壌微生物学会
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
pp.ME17134, (Released:2018-01-24)
被引用文献数
21

The activity of nitrogen fixation measured by acetylene reduction was examined in chemosynthetic microbial mats at 72–75°C in slightly-alkaline sulfidic hot springs in Nakabusa, Japan. Nitrogenase activity markedly varied from sampling to sampling. Nitrogenase activity did not correlate with methane production, but was detected in samples showing methane production levels less than the maximum amount, indicating a possible redox dependency of nitrogenase activity. Nitrogenase activity was not affected by 2-bromo-ethane sulfonate, an inhibitor of methanogenesis. However, it was inhibited by the addition of molybdate, an inhibitor of sulfate reduction and sulfur disproportionation, suggesting the involvement of sulfate-reducing or sulfur-disproportionating organisms. Nitrogenase activity was affected by different O2 concentrations in the gas phase, again supporting the hypothesis of a redox potential dependency, and was decreased by the dispersion of mats with a homogenizer. The loss of activity that occurred from dispersion was partially recovered by the addition of H2, sulfate, and carbon dioxide. These results suggested that the observed activity of nitrogen fixation was related to chemoautotrophic sulfate reducers, and fixation may be active in a limited range of ambient redox potential. Since thermophilic chemosynthetic communities may resemble ancient microbial communities before the appearance of photosynthesis, the present results may be useful when considering the ancient nitrogen cycle on earth.
著者
Paula Prondzinsky Sarah J. Berkemer Lewis M. Ward Shawn E. McGlynn
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology / Taiwan Society of Microbial Ecology / Japanese Society of Plant Microbe Interactions / Japanese Society for Extremophiles
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.36, no.2, pp.ME20138, 2021 (Released:2021-05-01)
参考文献数
84
被引用文献数
5

Cyanobacteria thrive in diverse environments. However, questions remain about possible growth limitations in ancient environmental conditions. As a single genus, the Thermosynechococcus are cosmopolitan and live in chemically diverse habitats. To understand the genetic basis for this, we compared the protein coding component of Thermosynechococcus genomes. Supplementing the known genetic diversity of Thermosynechococcus, we report draft metagenome-assembled genomes of two Thermosynechococcus recovered from ferrous carbonate hot springs in Japan. We find that as a genus, Thermosynechococcus is genomically conserved, having a small pan-genome with few accessory genes per individual strain as well as few genes that are unique to the genus. Furthermore, by comparing orthologous protein groups, including an analysis of genes encoding proteins with an iron related function (uptake, storage or utilization), no clear differences in genetic content, or adaptive mechanisms could be detected between genus members, despite the range of environments they inhabit. Overall, our results highlight a seemingly innate ability for Thermosynechococcus to inhabit diverse habitats without having undergone substantial genomic adaptation to accommodate this. The finding of Thermosynechococcus in both hot and high iron environments without adaptation recognizable from the perspective of the proteome has implications for understanding the basis of thermophily within this clade, and also for understanding the possible genetic basis for high iron tolerance in cyanobacteria on early Earth. The conserved core genome may be indicative of an allopatric lifestyle—or reduced genetic complexity of hot spring habitats relative to other environments.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Shin Haruta Shawn E. McGlynn Vera Thiel Katsumi Matsuura
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology · The Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.33, no.1, pp.10-18, 2018 (Released:2018-03-29)
参考文献数
77
被引用文献数
21

The activity of nitrogen fixation measured by acetylene reduction was examined in chemosynthetic microbial mats at 72–75°C in slightly-alkaline sulfidic hot springs in Nakabusa, Japan. Nitrogenase activity markedly varied from sampling to sampling. Nitrogenase activity did not correlate with methane production, but was detected in samples showing methane production levels less than the maximum amount, indicating a possible redox dependency of nitrogenase activity. Nitrogenase activity was not affected by 2-bromo-ethane sulfonate, an inhibitor of methanogenesis. However, it was inhibited by the addition of molybdate, an inhibitor of sulfate reduction and sulfur disproportionation, suggesting the involvement of sulfate-reducing or sulfur-disproportionating organisms. Nitrogenase activity was affected by different O2 concentrations in the gas phase, again supporting the hypothesis of a redox potential dependency, and was decreased by the dispersion of mats with a homogenizer. The loss of activity that occurred from dispersion was partially recovered by the addition of H2, sulfate, and carbon dioxide. These results suggested that the observed activity of nitrogen fixation was related to chemoautotrophic sulfate reducers, and fixation may be active in a limited range of ambient redox potential. Since thermophilic chemosynthetic communities may resemble ancient microbial communities before the appearance of photosynthesis, the present results may be useful when considering the ancient nitrogen cycle on earth.
著者
Arisa Nishihara Vera Thiel Katsumi Matsuura Shawn E. McGlynn Shin Haruta
出版者
Japanese Society of Microbial Ecology · The Japanese Society of Soil Microbiology
雑誌
Microbes and Environments (ISSN:13426311)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.33, no.4, pp.357-365, 2018 (Released:2018-12-28)
参考文献数
79
被引用文献数
1 23

Chemosynthetic microbial communities develop and form dense cell aggregates in slightly alkaline sulfidic hot springs in the temperature range of 70–86°C at Nakabusa, Japan. Nitrogenase activity has recently been detected in the microbial communities collected. To identify possible members capable of nitrogen fixation, we examined the diversities of 16S rRNA and nitrogenase reductase (NifH) gene sequences in four types of chemosynthetic communities with visually different colors and thicknesses. The results of a 16S rRNA gene analysis indicated that all four microbial communities had similar bacterial constituents; the phylum Aquificae was the dominant member, followed in abundance by Thermodesulfobacteria, Firmicutes, and Thermotogae. Most of the NifH sequences were related to sequences reported in hydrothermal vents and terrestrial hot springs. The results of a phylogenetic analysis of NifH sequences revealed diversity in this gene among the communities collected, distributed within 7 phylogenetic groups. NifH sequences affiliated with Aquificae (Hydrogenobacter/Thermocrinis) and Firmicutes (Caldicellulosiruptor) were abundant. At least two different energy metabolic pathways appeared to be related to nitrogen fixation in the communities analyzed; aerobic sulfur/hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria in Aquificae and fermentative bacteria in Firmicutes. The metabolic characteristics of these two dominant phyla differed from those previously inferred from nitrogenase activity assays on chemosynthetic communities, which were associated with hydrogen-dependent autotrophic sulfate reduction. These assays may correspond to the observed NifH sequences that are distantly related to the known species of Thermodesulfovibrio sp. (Nitrospirae) detected in the present study. The activities of nitrogen-fixing organisms in communities may depend on redox states as well as the availability of electron donors, acceptors, and carbon sources.