Nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation
EURASIA ACADEMIC PUBLISHING GROUP
Ethane, an overlooked greenhouse gas, can be oxidized with electron acceptors like sulfate and nitrate. Despite nitrite being a more thermodynamically feasible electron acceptor, little is known about nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation.
In a study published in Environmental Science and Ecotechnology, a microbial culture capable of nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation was enriched through long-term operation of a nitrite-and-ethane-fed bioreactor. During continuous operation, the nitrite removal rate and the theoretical ethane oxidation rate remained stable at approximately 25.0 mg NO2–N L−1 d−1 and 11.48 mg C2H6 L−1 d−1, respectively. Batch tests demonstrated that ethane is essential for nitrite removal in this microbial culture. Metabolic function analysis revealed that a species affiliated with a novel genus within the family Rhodocyclaceae, designated as 'Candidatus Alkanivoras nitrosoreducens', may perform the nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation. This novel genus is described in full in the paper.
Based on a meta-omic analysis, 'Ca. A. nitrosoreducens' encoded and expressed a prospective fumarate addition pathway for anaerobic ethane oxidation and a complete denitrification pathway for nitrite reduction to N2, although the genes for ethane conversion to ethyl-succinate (assAs) and succinate-CoA ligase (sucCD) required further identification.
Phylogenetic affiliation analysis showed a distant genetic relationship between 'Ca. A. nitrosoreducens' and the previously reported 'Candidatus Alkanivorans nitratireducens' that was capable of nitrate-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation, which suggests functional microbial differences in different natural environments.
This study offers new evidence of nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation occurring in enriched cultures from hot-spring sediment, and describes a novel genus potentially involved in this process .
These findings advance our understanding of nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation, highlighting the previously overlooked impact of anaerobic ethane oxidation in natural ecosystems.
JOURNAL
Environmental Science and Ecotechnology
METHOD OF RESEARCH
Experimental study
SUBJECT OF RESEARCH
Cells
ARTICLE TITLE
Nitrite-driven anaerobic ethane oxidation
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