Project description:Purpose: Identification of transcriptionally active genes in the unculturable community constituent, Smithella, during hexadecane degradation; Differential gene expression analysis of hexadecane-relevant genes acoss three different conditions; Extension of metatranscriptomic datasets to other community constituents to identify interspecies relationships.
Project description:In the present study, a methanogenic alkane-degrading (a mixture of C9 to C12n-alkanes) culture enriched from production water of a low-temperature oil reservoir was established and assessed. Significant methane production was detected in the alkane-amended enrichment cultures compared with alkane-free controls over an incubation period of 1 year. At the end of the incubation, fumarate addition metabolites (C9 to C12 alkylsuccinates) and assA genes (encoding the alpha subunit of alkylsuccinate synthase) were detected only in the alkane-amended enrichment cultures. Microbial community analysis showed that putative syntrophic n-alkane degraders (Smithella) capable of initiating n-alkanes by fumarate addition mechanism were enriched in the alkane-amended enrichment cultures. In addition, both hydrogenotrophic (Methanocalculus) and acetoclastic (Methanothrix) methanogens were also observed. Our results provide further evidence that alkanes can be activated by addition to fumarate under methanogenic conditions.
