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Anaerobic microbiology of methylated compounds in Black Sea Sediments

  • 12 May, 2023
  • 11:00
  • Wageningen University, Microbiology
  • prof.dr. D.Z. Machado De Sousaprof.dr.ir. A.J.M. Stams
  • dr. L. Villanueva Alvarez

Methylated compounds such as methanol are small molecules with no carbon-carbon bonds. They are often end products of fermentative processes in marine sediments. It is therefore expected that many microorganisms from this environment are able to utilize these compounds in their metabolism. The main characters in these processes are sulfate reducing microorganisms, methanogens and acetogens. However, there are many unknowns about the interactions between these organisms in the presence of methylated compounds. Through metagenomic and culturomic approaches we aimed to obtain information on Black Sea microorganisms, then selected bicultures to understand microbial interactions. We identified quaternary methylated amines as a potential potent source for marine anoxic methylotrophy. Furthermore, we have identified a range of genomes and a bacterial isolate capable of methylotrophy. Our results have an impact on the understanding of the formation of gasses that cause climate change such as methane and CO2 by anaerobic marine systems.

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Peter Fischer

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