SGER: Genetic Engineering of Archaeoglobus Fulgidus

所有已知产甲烷菌的碳源需求仅限于简单的C1和C2化合物，如CO2、甲醇、甲酸盐和醋酸盐，尽管高分子量的碳源产甲烷足以满足生长的需要。目前用于甲烷生产的厌氧消化过程包括三个基本步骤：增溶、产酸和产甲烷。这些过程是由不同的微生物群落和不同的最佳pH值进行的。该项目的目标是设计一种能够从复杂底物中产生甲烷的微生物。这将提高甲烷生产厌氧消化过程的速率和效率。富氏古舌菌是一种极端嗜热（83摄氏度）的硫酸盐还原古菌，生长在多种碳源上，包括蛋白胨、淀粉和明胶。A. fulgidus被认为是产甲烷菌和硫酸盐代谢物之间的“进化缺失环节”，因为它利用了甲烷生成过程中除了最后的酶之外的所有酶。在这个探索性项目中，突变/选择策略和基因转移技术被用于从黄颡鱼中创造一个广泛的底物范围的甲烷菌。古球菌基因工程的成功将导致甲烷（一种理想的能源）生产速度和效率的重大提高。＊＊＊

9321893 Hartzell The carbon source requirements of all known methanogens are limited to simple C1 and C2 compounds such as CO2, methanol, formate, and acetate despite the fact that methanogenesis from higher molecular weight carbon sources would be sufficiently exergonic for growth. Current anaerobic digestion processes for methane production involve three basic steps: solubilization, acidogenesis, and methanogenesis. These processes are carried out by different microbial consortia with different pH optima. The goal of this project is to engineer a microbe capable of methanogenesis from complex substrates. This will improve the rate and efficiency of anaerobic digestion processes for methane production. The organism, Archaeoglobus fulgidus, is an extremely thermophilic (83 degrees C) sulfate-reducing Archaeon that grows on a broad range of carbon sources including peptone, starch, and gelatin. A. fulgidus has been referred to as "the evolutionary missing link" between the methanogens and the sulfate metabolizers as it utilizes all but the final enzymes involved in methanogenesis. In this exploratory project, both mutation/selection strategies and gene transfer techniques are being used to create a broad-substrate-range methanogen from A. fulgidus. %%% Success in genetically engineering Archaeolglobus should lead to a major improvement in the rate and efficiency of production of methane, a desirable energy source. ***