The problematic rise of Archean oxygen

The strict anaerobe Bacteroides fragilis grows in and benefits from nanomolar concentrations of oxygen

Strict anaerobes cannot grow in the presence of greater than 5 micro M dissolved oxygen. Despite this growth inhibition, many strict anaerobes of the Bacteroides class of eubacteria can survive in oxygenated environments until the partial pressure of O2 (PO2) is sufficiently reduced. For example, the periodontal pathogens Porphyromonas gingivalis and Tannerella forsythensis colonize subgingival plaques of mammals, whereas several other Bacteroides species colonize the gastrointestinal tract of animals. It has been suggested that pre-colonization of these sites by facultative anaerobes is essential for reduction of the PO2 and subsequent colonization by strict anaerobes. However, this model is inconsistent with the observation that Bacteroides fragilis can colonize the colon in the absence of facultative anaerobes. Thus, this strict anaerobe may have a role in reduction of the environmental PO2. Although some strictly anaerobic bacteria can consume oxygen through an integral membrane electron transport system, the physiological role of this system has not been established in these organisms. Here we demonstrate that B. fragilis encodes a cytochrome bd oxidase that is essential for O2 consumption and is required, under some conditions, for the stimulation of growth in the presence of nanomolar concentrations of O2. Furthermore, our data suggest that this property is conserved in many other organisms that have been described as strict anaerobes.

Bacterial diversity and sulfur cycling in a mesophilic sulfide-rich spring

An artesian sulfide- and sulfur-rich spring in southwestern Oklahoma is shown to sustain an extremely rich and diverse microbial community. Laboratory incubations and autoradiography studies indicated that active sulfur cycling is occurring in the abundant microbial mats at Zodletone spring. Anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria oxidize sulfide to sulfate, which is reduced by sulfate-reducing bacterial populations. The microbial community at Zodletone spring was analyzed by cloning and sequencing 16S rRNA genes. A large fraction (83%) of the microbial mat clones belong to sulfur- and sulfate-reducing lineages within delta-Proteobacteria, purple sulfur gamma-Proteobacteria, epsilon -Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, and filamentous Cyanobacteria of the order Oscillatoria as well as a novel group within gamma-Proteobacteria. The 16S clone library constructed from hydrocarbon-exposed sediments at the source of the spring had a higher diversity than the mat clone library (Shannon-Weiner index of 3.84 compared to 2.95 for the mat), with a higher percentage of clones belonging to nonphototrophic lineages (e.g., Cytophaga, Spirochaetes, Planctomycetes, Firmicutes, and Verrucomicrobiae). Many of these clones were closely related to clones retrieved from hydrocarbon-contaminated environments and anaerobic hydrocarbon-degrading enrichments. In addition, 18 of the source clones did not cluster with any of the previously described microbial divisions. These 18 clones, together with previously published or database-deposited related sequences retrieved from a wide variety of environments, could be clustered into at least four novel candidate divisions. The sulfate-reducing community at Zodletone spring was characterized by cloning and sequencing a 1.9-kb fragment of the dissimilatory sulfite reductase (DSR) gene. DSR clones belonged to the Desulfococcus-Desulfosarcina-Desulfonema group, Desulfobacter group, and Desulfovibrio group as well as to a deeply branched group in the DSR tree with no representatives from cultures. Overall, this work expands the division-level diversity of the bacterial domain and highlights the complexity of microbial communities involved in sulfur cycling in mesophilic microbial mats.