Author Identifier
Himel Nahreen Khaleque: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5737-9678
Homayoun Fathollahzadeh: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6232-2919
Elizabeth Watkin: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4881-7234
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
FEMS Microbiology Ecology
Volume
100
Issue
12
PubMed ID
39496518
Publisher
Oxford Academic
School
School of Science
RAS ID
77171
Funders
Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship / CSIRO Mineral Resources Postgraduate Scholarship
Abstract
In-depth comparative genomic analysis was conducted to predict carbon, nitrogen, and phosphate assimilation pathways in the halotolerant, acidophilic genus Acidihalobacter. The study primarily aimed to understand how the metabolic capabilities of each species can determine their roles and effects on the microbial ecology of their unique saline and acidic environments, as well as in their potential application to saline water bioleaching systems. All four genomes encoded the genes for the complete tricarboxylic acid cycle, including 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase, a key enzyme absent in obligate chemolithotrophic acidophiles. Genes for a unique carboxysome shell protein, csoS1D, typically found in halotolerant bacteria but not in acidophiles, were identified. All genomes contained lactate and malate utilization genes, but only A. ferrooxydans DSM 14175T contained genes for the metabolism of propionate. Genes for phosphate assimilation were present, though organized differently across species. Only A. prosperus DSM 5130T and A. aeolianus DSM 14174T genomes contained nitrogen fixation genes, while A. ferrooxydans DSM 14175T and A. yilgarnensis DSM 105917T possessed genes for urease transporters and respiratory nitrate reductases, respectively. The findings suggest that all species can fix carbon dioxide but can also potentially utilize exogenous carbon sources and that the non-nitrogen-fixing species rely on alternative nitrogen assimilation mechanisms.
DOI
10.1093/femsec/fiae145
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Comments
Khaleque, H. N., Fathollahzadeh, H., Kaksonen, A. H., Valdés, J., Vergara, E., Holmes, D. S., & Watkin, E. L. (2024). Genomic insights into key mechanisms for carbon, nitrogen, and phosphate assimilation by the acidophilic, halotolerant genus Acidihalobacter members. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 100(12). https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fiae145