Thermophilic archaea activate butane via alkyl-coenzyme M formation
Thermophilic archaea activate butane via alkyl-coenzyme M formation
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DOI：
10.1038/nature20152
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发表时间：
2016-11-17
期刊：
影响因子：
64.8
通讯作者：
Musat, Florin
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Laso-Perez, Rafael;Wegener, Gunter;Musat, Florin
The anaerobic formation and oxidation of methane involve unique enzymatic mechanisms and cofactors, all of which are believed to be specific for C-1-compounds. Here we show that an anaerobic thermophilic enrichment culture composed of dense consortia of archaea and bacteria apparently uses partly similar pathways to oxidize the C-4 hydrocarbon butane. The archaea, proposed genus Candidatus Syntrophoarchaeum', show the characteristic autofluorescence of methanogens, and contain highly expressed genes encoding enzymes similar to methyl-coenzyme M reductase. We detect butyl-coenzyme M, indicating archaeal butane activation analogous to the first step in anaerobic methane oxidation. In addition, Ca. Syntrophoarchaeum expresses the genes encoding beta-oxidation enzymes, carbon monoxide dehydrogenase and reversible C-1 methanogenesis enzymes. This allows for the complete oxidation of butane. Reducing equivalents are seemingly channelled to HotSeep-1, a thermophilic sulfate-reducing partner bacterium known from the anaerobic oxidation of methane. Genes encoding 16S rRNA and methyl-coenzyme M reductase similar to those identifying Ca. Syntrophoarchaeum were repeatedly retrieved from marine subsurface sediments, suggesting that the presented activation mechanism is naturally widespread in the anaerobic oxidation of short-chain hydrocarbons.
