Sulfidic benzene-contaminated groundwater was used to fuel a two-chambered microbial fuel cell (MFC) over a period of 770 days. We aimed to understand benzene and sulfide removal processes in the anoxic anode chamber and describe the microbial community enriched over the operational time. Operated in batch feeding-like circular mode, supply of fresh groundwater resulted in a rapid increase in current production, accompanied by decreasing benzene and sulfide concentrations. The total electron recoveries for benzene and sulfide were between 18% and 49%, implying that benzene and sulfide were not completely oxidized at the anode. Pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA genes from the anode-associated bacterial community revealed the dominance of δ-Proteobacteria (31%), followed by β-Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, ϵ-Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, and Firmicutes, most of which are known for anaerobic metabolism. Two-dimensional compound-specific isotope analysis demonstrated that benzene degradation was initiated by monohydroxylation, probably triggered by small amounts of oxygen which had leaked through the cation exchange membrane into the anode chamber. Experiments with [(13)C(6) ]-benzene revealed incorporation of (13)C into fatty acids of mainly Gram-negative bacteria, which are therefore candidates for benzene degradation. Our study demonstrated simultaneous benzene and sulfide removal by groundwater microorganisms which use an anode as artificial electron acceptor, thereby releasing an electrical current.

The gram-negative, strictly anaerobic epsilonproteobacterium Sulfurospirillum multivorans is able to gain energy from dehalorespiration with tetrachloroethene (perchloroethylene [PCE]) as a terminal electron acceptor. The organism can also utilize fumarate as an electron acceptor. Prolonged subcultivation of S. multivorans in the absence of PCE with pyruvate as an electron donor and fumarate as an electron acceptor resulted in a decrease of PCE dehalogenase (PceA) activity. Concomitantly, the pceA transcript level equally decreased as shown by reverse transcriptase PCR. (19). The organism utilizes pyruvate, hydrogen, or formate as an electron donor. When grown with hydrogen or formate as an electron donor and PCE as an electron acceptor, ATP synthesis is coupled to reductive dechlorination via electron transport phosphorylation (dehalorespiration) (8). The key enzyme of PCE utilization that converts PCE via TCE to cis-1,2-dichloroethene (cDCE) is the PCE reductive dehalogenase (PceA). Mature PceA is a monomeric enzyme harboring one norpseudovitamin B 12 and two Fe/S clusters as cofactors (12,15). The cytoplasmic precursor of the PCE dehalogenase (pre-PceA) bears an N-terminal signal peptide of 37 amino acids, including the motif SRRXFXK, which identifies pre-PceA as a substrate of the Tat (twin arginine translocation) protein export pathway (2). Mature PceA is localized in the periplasm, as shown by freeze fracture immunogold labeling techniques (9).The pce operon comprises pceA, the PCE dehalogenase gene, and pceB, encoding a putative membrane integral protein (16). Genes for transcriptional regulation of the pceAB genes are not found in a 6-kb DNA fragment including the pce operon (GenBank accession number AF022812).The ability of reductive dechlorination by anaerobic bacteria was found in phylogenetically distant species (8). Transcriptional regulation of dehalogenase gene expression was described for the 3-chloro-4-hydroxy-phenylacetate (Cl-OHPA) dehalogenase (CprA) of the gram-positive Desulfitobacterium dehalogenans. In this organism, the enzyme was strictly regulated by the absence or presence of the substrate. When the cultures were grown with alternative electron acceptors, such as fumarate or nitrate, CprA transcription ceased within the first subcultivation and was induced within less than 30 min (21). A CRP/FNR-like transcriptional activator, CprK, encoded within the cpr operon, was shown to interact with the DNA upstream of the cpr promoter region only when Cl-OHPA was bound to the protein (18). A direct role of CprK in the induction of dehalogenase gene expression in D. dehalogenans was assumed, and a model for transcriptional regulation of cprA expression was developed (13).While detailed information is available on the control of dehalogenase gene expression in D. dehalogenans grown in the presence of chlorinated aromatic compounds, such as Cl-OHPA, a transcriptional regulation of the PCE dehalogenase genes of Desulfitobacterium species has not been described so far (23). Tsukagoshi and coworker...

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is currently under debate as large-scale solution to globally reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas CO2. Depleted gas or oil reservoirs and saline aquifers are considered as suitable reservoirs providing sufficient storage capacity. We investigated the influence of high CO2 concentrations on the indigenous bacterial population in the saline formation fluids of a natural gas field. Bacterial community changes were closely examined at elevated CO2 concentrations under near in situ pressures and temperatures. Conditions in the high pressure reactor systems simulated reservoir fluids i) close to the CO2 injection point, i.e. saturated with CO2, and ii) at the outer boundaries of the CO2 dissolution gradient. During the incubations with CO2, total cell numbers remained relatively stable, but no microbial sulfate reduction activity was detected. After CO2 release and subsequent transfer of the fluids, an actively sulfate-respiring community was re-established. The predominance of spore-forming Clostridiales provided evidence for the resilience of this taxon against the bactericidal effects of supercritical (sc)CO2. To ensure the long-term safety and injectivity, the viability of fermentative and sulfate-reducing bacteria has to be considered in the selection, design, and operation of CCS sites.

Syntrophic mineralisation of benzene, as recently proposed for a sulphatereducing enrichment culture, was tested in product inhibition experiments with acetate and hydrogen, both putative intermediates of anaerobic benzene fermentation. Using [ 13 C 6 ]-benzene enabled tracking the inhibition of benzene mineralisation sensitively by analysis of 13 CO 2 . In noninhibited cultures, hydrogen was detected at partial pressures of 2.4 Â 10 À6 AE 1.5 Â 10 À6 atm. Acetate was detected at concentrations of 17 AE 2 mM. Spiking with 0.1 atm hydrogen produced a transient inhibitory effect on 13 CO 2 formation. In cultures spiked with higher amounts of hydrogen, benzene mineralisation did not restart after hydrogen consumption, possibly due to the toxic effects of the sulphide produced. An inhibitory effect was also observed when acetate was added to the cultures (0.3, 3.5 and 30 mM). Benzene mineralisation resumed after acetate was degraded to concentrations found in noninhibited cultures, indicating that acetate is another key intermediate in anaerobic benzene mineralisation. Although benzene mineralisation by a single sulphate reducer cannot be ruled out, our results strongly point to an involvement of syntrophic interactions in the process. Thermodynamic calculations revealed that, under in situ conditions, benzene fermentation to hydrogen and acetate yielded a free energy change of DG 0 = À 83.1 AE 5.6 kJ mol À1 . Benzene mineralisation ceased when DG 0 values declined below À 61.3 AE 5.3 kJ mol À1 in the presence of acetate, indicating that ATP-consuming reactions are involved in the pathway.

In wetlands, a variety of biotic and abiotic processes can contribute to the removal of organic substances. Here, we used compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA), hydrogeochemical parameters and detection of functional genes to characterize in situ biodegradation of benzene in a model constructed wetland over a period of 370 days. Despite low dissolved oxygen concentrations (<30 μM), the oxidation of ammonium to nitrate and the complete oxidation of ferrous iron pointed to a dominance of aerobic processes, suggesting efficient oxygen transfer into the sediment zone by plants. As benzene removal became highly efficient after day 231 (>98% removal), we applied CSIA to study in situ benzene degradation by indigenous microbes. Combining carbon and hydrogen isotope signatures by two-dimensional stable isotope analysis revealed that benzene was degraded aerobically, mainly via the monohydroxylation pathway. This was additionally supported by the detection of the BTEX monooxygenase gene tmoA in sediment and root samples. Calculating the extent of biodegradation from the isotope signatures demonstrated that at least 85% of benzene was degraded by this pathway and thus, only a small fraction was removed abiotically. This study shows that model wetlands can contribute to an understanding of biodegradation processes in floodplains or natural wetland systems.

This chapter gives the reader an introduction into the microbiology of deep geological systems with a special focus on potential geobiotechnological applications and respective risk assessments. It has been known for decades that microbial activity is responsible for the degradation or conversion of hydrocarbons in oil, gas, and coal reservoirs. These processes occur in the absence of oxygen, a typical characteristic of such deep ecosystems. The understanding of the responsible microbial processes and their environmental regulation is not only of great scientific interest. It also has substantial economic and social relevance, inasmuch as these processes directly or indirectly affect the quantity and quality of the stored oil or gas. As outlined in the following chapter, in addition to the conventional hydrocarbons, new interest in such deep subsurface systems is rising for different technological developments. These are introduced together with related geomicrobiological topics. The capture and long-termed storage of large amounts of carbon dioxide, carbon capture and storage (CCS), for example, in depleted oil and gas reservoirs, is considered to be an important options to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. On the other hand, the increasing contribution of energy from natural and renewable sources, such as wind, solar, geothermal energy, or biogas production leads to an increasing interest in underground storage of renewable energies. Energy carriers, that is, biogas, methane, or hydrogen, are often produced in a nonconstant manner and renewable energy may be produced at some distance from the place where it is needed. Therefore, storing the energy after its conversion to methane or hydrogen in porous reservoirs or salt caverns is extensively discussed. All these developments create new research fields and challenges for microbiologists and geobiotechnologists. As a basis for respective future work, we introduce the three major topics, that is, CCS, underground storage of gases from renewable energy production, and the production of geothermal energy, and summarize the current stat of knowledge about related geomicrobiological and geobiotechnological aspects in this chapter. Finally, recommendations are made for future research.

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Impacts of long-term CO 2 exposure on environmental processes and microbial populations of near surface soils are poorly understood. This near-surface long-term CO 2 injection study demonstrated that soil microbiology and geochemistry is influenced more by seasonal parameters than elevated CO 2 . Soil samples were taken during a three-year field experiment including sampling campaigns before, during and after 24 months of continuous CO 2 injection. CO 2 concentrations within CO 2 -injected plots increased up to 23% during the injection period. No CO 2 impacts on geochemistry were detected over time. In addition, CO 2 -exposed samples did not show significant changes in microbial CO 2 and CH 4 turnover rates compared to reference samples. Likewise, no significant CO 2 -induced variations were detected for the abundance of Bacteria, Archaea (16S rDNA) and gene copy numbers of the mcrA gene, Crenarchaeota and amoA gene. The majority (75-95%) of the bacterial sequences were assigned into five phyla: Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria and Bacteroidetes. The majority of the archaeal sequences (85-100%) were assigned to the thaumarchaeotal cluster I.1b (soil group). Univariate and multivariate statistical as well as principal component analyses (PCA) showed no significant CO 2 -induced variation. Instead, seasonal impacts especially temperature and precipitation were detected.3