Assessing the Ecophysiology of Methanogens in the Context of Recent Astrobiological and Planetological Studies

Taubner, Ruth-Sophie; Schleper, Christa; Firneis, M. G.; Rittmann, Simon K.-M. R.

doi:10.3390/life5041652

Cited by 52 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 213 publications

(330 reference statements)

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“…Methanogens are an intriguing group of microorganisms with extraordinary ecological (Liu and Whitman, 2008 ), biochemical (Ferry, 2010 ; Thauer et al, 2010 ), physiological (Thauer et al, 2008 ; Taubner et al, 2015 ) characteristics, and promising biotechnological potential (Seifert et al, 2013 , 2014 ; Rittmann et al, 2015 ; Rittmann, 2015 ). Currently all methanogens are phylogenetically classified into the phylum Euryarchaeota (Liu and Whitman, 2008 ; Borrel et al, 2013 ) but recently the metabolism of a putative methane (CH 4 ) producing Candidatus lineage was reconstructed in silico and assigned to the phylum Bathyarchaeota (Evans et al, 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Method for Indirect Quantification of CH4 Production via H2O Production Using Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens

Taubner

Rittmann

2016

Front. Microbiol.

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Hydrogenotrophic methanogens are an intriguing group of microorganisms from the domain Archaea. Methanogens exhibit extraordinary ecological, biochemical, and physiological characteristics and possess a huge biotechnological potential. Yet, the only possibility to assess the methane (CH4) production potential of hydrogenotrophic methanogens is to apply gas chromatographic quantification of CH4. In order to be able to effectively screen pure cultures of hydrogenotrophic methanogens regarding their CH4 production potential we developed a novel method for indirect quantification of the volumetric CH4 production rate by measuring the volumetric water production rate. This method was established in serum bottles for cultivation of methanogens in closed batch cultivation mode. Water production was estimated by determining the difference in mass increase in a quasi-isobaric setting. This novel CH4 quantification method is an accurate and precise analytical technique, which can be used to rapidly screen pure cultures of methanogens regarding their volumetric CH4 evolution rate. It is a cost effective alternative determining CH4 production of methanogens over CH4 quantification by using gas chromatography, especially if applied as a high throughput quantification method. Eventually, the method can be universally applied for quantification of CH4 production from psychrophilic, thermophilic and hyperthermophilic hydrogenotrophic methanogens.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Method for Indirect Quantification of CH4 Production via H2O Production Using Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens

Taubner

Rittmann

2016

Front. Microbiol.

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“…On the one hand, some genera are known to be strictly anaerobic chemolithotrophs that use hydrogen and carbon dioxide as the only energy and carbon sources. On Earth, they are found widespread in anaerobic habitats, and they appear in high numbers in extreme environments that range from permafrost to hot temperatures, high salinity, and high/low pH (Ferry, 1993), which are conditions relevant in recent martian environments (Taubner et al, 2015). On the other hand, methanogenic archaea produce methane as a metabolic end product.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Response of Methanogenic Archaea from Siberian Permafrost and Non-permafrost Environments to Simulated Mars-like Desiccation and the Presence of Perchlorate

et al. 2019

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Numerous preflight investigations were necessary prior to the exposure experiment BIOMEX on the International Space Station to test the basic potential of selected microorganisms to resist or even to be active under Mars-like conditions. In this study, methanogenic archaea, which are anaerobic chemolithotrophic microorganisms whose lifestyle would allow metabolism under the conditions on early and recent Mars, were analyzed. Some strains from Siberian permafrost environments have shown a particular resistance. In this investigation, we analyzed the response of three permafrost strains (Methanosarcina soligelidi SMA-21, Candidatus Methanosarcina SMA-17, Candidatus Methanobacterium SMA-27) and two related strains from non-permafrost environments (Methanosarcina mazei, Methanosarcina barkeri) to desiccation conditions (-80°C for 315 days, martian regolith analog simulants S-MRS and P-MRS, a 128-day period of simulated Mars-like atmosphere). Exposure of the different methanogenic strains to increasing concentrations of magnesium perchlorate allowed for the study of their metabolic shutdown in a Mars-relevant perchlorate environment. Survival and metabolic recovery were analyzed by quantitative PCR, gas chromatography, and a new DNA-extraction method from viable cells embedded in S-MRS and P-MRS. All strains survived the two Mars-like desiccating scenarios and recovered to different extents. The permafrost strain SMA-27 showed an increased methanogenic activity by at least 10-fold after deep-freezing conditions. The methanogenic rates of all strains did not decrease significantly after 128 days S-MRS exposure, except for SMA-27, which decreased 10-fold. The activity of strains SMA-17 and SMA-27 decreased after 16 and 60 days P-MRS exposure. Non-permafrost strains showed constant survival and methane production when exposed to both desiccating scenarios. All strains showed unaltered methane production when exposed to the perchlorate concentration reported at the Phoenix landing site (2.4 mM) or even higher concentrations. We conclude that methanogens from (non-)permafrost environments are suitable candidates for potential life in the martian subsurface and therefore are worthy of study after space exposure experiments that approach Mars-like surface conditions.

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“…In particular, biomethanation for microbial reduction of CO2 into CH4 with renewably produced hydrogen (H2) is catalyzed by methanogenic archaea and operates at a lower temperature (40-70 °C) and lower pressure (≤10 bar) than chemical methanation [2]. Methanogenic archaea that produce methane using acetate (acetoclastic) or CO2 (hydrogenotrophic) are capable of thriving under extreme conditions, such as high temperatures or high salt environments [5]. The methanation rate of hydrogenotrophic methanogens was greater than that of acetoclastic methanogens [6], and among hydrogenotrophic methanogens, thermophilic hydrogenotrophic methanogens demonstrated a shorter doubling time [7] and a higher methane production rate than those of mesophilic hydrogenotrophic methanogens ( Figure 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Selective Removal of Water Generated during Hydrogenotrophic Methanation from Culture Medium Using Membrane Distillation

Choi

Kim

et al. 2019

Energies

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Methane production was carried out in two different types of reactors using a thermophilic and hydrogenotrophic methanogen, Methanothermobacter sp. KEPCO-1, which converts hydrogen and carbon dioxide into methane at 60 °C. The two reactors used for methane production were stirred-tank reactor (ST) and a bubble column reactor (BC), which were selected because they can provide a good comparison between the medium agitation type and gas–liquid mass transfer. The specific growth rate of KEPCO-1 in the ST and BC was 0.03 h−1 and 0.07 h−1, respectively. The methane conversion rate increased to 77.8 L/L/d in the ST and 19.8 L/L/d in the BC. To prevent the dilution of nutrients in the medium by the water generated during the hydrogenotrophic methanation reaction, a membrane distillation (MD) process was applied to selectively remove water from the culture medium. The MD process selectively removed only water from the medium. Fouling by KEPCO-1 had a negligible effect on flux and showed a high removal performance flux of 16.3 ± 3.1 L/m2/h. By operating the MD process in conjunction with the hydrogenotrophic methanation process, it is possible to prevent the dilution of the nutrients in the medium by the water generated during the methanation process, thereby maintaining stable microbial growth and methanation activity.

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Assessing the Ecophysiology of Methanogens in the Context of Recent Astrobiological and Planetological Studies

Cited by 52 publications

References 213 publications

Method for Indirect Quantification of CH4 Production via H2O Production Using Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens

Method for Indirect Quantification of CH4 Production via H2O Production Using Hydrogenotrophic Methanogens

Response of Methanogenic Archaea from Siberian Permafrost and Non-permafrost Environments to Simulated Mars-like Desiccation and the Presence of Perchlorate

Selective Removal of Water Generated during Hydrogenotrophic Methanation from Culture Medium Using Membrane Distillation

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