Project description:Crude oil is the one of the most important natural assets of humankind, yet it is a major environmental pollutant, in particular, in marine environments. One of the largest crude oil polluted areas in the word is the semi-enclosed Mediterranean Sea, where the metabolic potential of indigenous populations towards the chronic pollution at a large scale is yet to be defined, particularly in anaerobic and micro-anaerobic marine sites. Here, we provided a novel insight into the active microbial metabolism in sediments from three environments along the coastline of Italy. Microbial proteomes exhibited prevalence in anaerobic metabolism, not related to the biodegradation directly, suggesting the strong limitation by oxygen induced by the carbon overload. They also point at previously unrecognized metabolic coupling between methane and methanol utilizers as well as sulfur reducers in marine petroleum polluted sediments.
Project description:Our goal is to convert methane efficiently into liquid fuels that may be more readily transported. Since aerobic oxidation of methane is less efficient, we focused on anaerobic processes to capture methane, which are accomplished by anaerobic methanotrophic archaea (ANME) in consortia. However, no pure culture capable of oxidizing and growing on methane anaerobically has been isolated. In this study, Methanosarcina acetivorans, an archaeal methanogen, was metabolically engineered to take up methane, rather than to generate it. To capture methane, we cloned the DNA coding for the enzyme methyl-coenzyme M reductase (Mcr) from an unculturable archaeal organism from a Black Sea mat into M. acetivorans to effectively run methanogenesis in reverse. The engineered strain produces primarily acetate, and our results demonstrate that pure cultures can grow anaerobically on methane.
2015-12-20 | GSE66445 | GEO
Project description:Anaerobic oxidation of methane in Lake Cadagno sediments
| PRJNA497531 | ENA
Project description:Anaerobic oxidation of methane in Lake Sempach sediments
Project description:The consistent cold temperatures and large amount of precipitation in the Olympic and Cascade ranges of Washington State are thought to increase atmospheric deposition of contaminants in these high elevation locations. Total mercury and 28 organochlorine compounds were measured in composite, whole fish samples collected from 14 remote lakes in the Olympic, Mt. Rainer, and North Cascades National Parks. Mercury was detected in fish from all lakes sampled and ranged in concentration from 17 to 262 ug/kg wet weight. Only two organochlorines, total polychlorinated biphenyls (tPCB) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), were detected in fish tissues (concentrations <25 ug/kg wet weight). No organochlorines were detected in sediments (MRL ≈1-5 ug/kg), while median total and methyl mercury in sediments were 30.4 and 0.34 ug/kg (dry weight), respectively. Using a targeted rainbow trout cDNA microarray with known genes, we detected significant differences in liver transcriptional responses, including metabolic, endocrine, and immune-related genes, in fish collected from a contaminated lake compared to a lake with a lower contaminant load. Overall, our results suggest that local urban areas are contributing to the observed contaminant patterns, while the transcriptional changes point to a biological response associated with exposure to these contaminants in fish. Specifically, the gene expression pattern leads us to hypothesize a role for mercury in disrupting the metabolic and reproductive pathways in fish from high elevation lakes in western Washington. Keywords: High altitude lakes, mercury, salmonids, organochlorines
Project description:Epigenetic variation has the potential to control environmentally dependent development and contribute to phenotypic responses to local environments. Environmental epigenetic studies of sexual organisms confirm the responsiveness of epigenetic variation, which should be even more important when genetic variation is lacking. A previous study of an asexual snail, Potamopyrgus antipodarum, demonstrated that different populations derived from a single clonal lineage differed in both shell phenotype and methylation signature when comparing lake versus river populations. Here, we examine methylation variation among lakes that differ in environmental disturbance and pollution histories. The differential DNA methylation regions (DMRs) identified among the different lake comparisons suggested a higher number of DMRs and variation between rural Lake 1 and one urban Lake 2 and between the two urban Lakes 2 and 3, but limited variation between the rural Lake 1 and urban Lake 3. DMR genomic characteristics and gene associations were investigated. Observations suggest there is no effect of geographic distance or any consistent pattern of DMRs between urban and rural lakes. Environmental factors may influence epigenetic response.
2019-09-27 | GSE133502 | GEO
Project description:Anaerobic digestion and methane oxidation
| PRJNA552646 | ENA
Project description:Artificial ecosystem selection on soil methane oxidation