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Freches A, Fradinho JC. The biotechnological potential of the Chloroflexota phylum. Appl Environ Microbiol 2024; 90:e0175623. [PMID: 38709098 DOI: 10.1128/aem.01756-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/07/2024] Open
Abstract
In the next decades, the increasing material and energetic demand to support population growth and higher standards of living will amplify the current pressures on ecosystems and will call for greater investments in infrastructures and modern technologies. A valid approach to overcome such future challenges is the employment of sustainable bio-based technologies that explore the metabolic richness of microorganisms. Collectively, the metabolic capabilities of Chloroflexota, spanning aerobic and anaerobic conditions, thermophilic adaptability, anoxygenic photosynthesis, and utilization of toxic compounds as electron acceptors, underscore the phylum's resilience and ecological significance. These diverse metabolic strategies, driven by the interplay between temperature, oxygen availability, and energy metabolism, exemplify the complex adaptations that enabled Chloroflexota to colonize a wide range of ecological niches. In demonstrating the metabolic richness of the Chloroflexota phylum, specific members exemplify the diverse capabilities of these microorganisms: Chloroflexus aurantiacus showcases adaptability through its thermophilic and phototrophic growth, whereas members of the Anaerolineae class are known for their role in the degradation of complex organic compounds, contributing significantly to the carbon cycle in anaerobic environments, highlighting the phylum's potential for biotechnological exploitation in varying environmental conditions. In this context, the metabolic diversity of Chloroflexota must be considered a promising asset for a large range of applications. Currently, this bacterial phylum is organized into eight classes possessing different metabolic strategies to survive and thrive in a wide variety of extreme environments. This review correlates the ecological role of Chloroflexota in such environments with the potential application of their metabolisms in biotechnological approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- André Freches
- Associate Laboratory i4HB - Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University of Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
- Department of Chemistry, UCIBIO - Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
| | - Joana Costa Fradinho
- Associate Laboratory i4HB - Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University of Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
- Department of Chemistry, UCIBIO - Applied Molecular Biosciences Unit, NOVA School of Science and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon, Caparica, Portugal
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Proteomic Time-Course Analysis of the Filamentous Anoxygenic Phototrophic Bacterium, Chloroflexus aurantiacus, during the Transition from Respiration to Phototrophy. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10071288. [PMID: 35889008 PMCID: PMC9316378 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10071288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 06/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Chloroflexus aurantiacus is a filamentous anoxygenic phototrophic bacterium that grows chemotrophically under oxic conditions and phototrophically under anoxic conditions. Because photosynthesis-related genes are scattered without any gene clusters in the genome, it is still unclear how this bacterium regulates protein expression in response to environmental changes. In this study, we performed a proteomic time-course analysis of how C. aurantiacus expresses proteins to acclimate to environmental changes, namely the transition from chemoheterotrophic respiratory to photoheterotrophic growth mode. Proteomic analysis detected a total of 2520 proteins out of 3934 coding sequences in the C. aurantiacus genome from samples collected at 13 time points. Almost all proteins for reaction centers, light-harvesting chlorosomes, and carbon fixation pathways were successfully detected during the growing phases in which optical densities and relative bacteriochlorophyll c contents increased simultaneously. Combination of proteomics and pigment analysis suggests that the self-aggregation of bacteriochlorophyllide c could precede the esterification of the hydrophobic farnesyl tail in cells. Cytoplasmic subunits of alternative complex III were interchanged between oxic and anoxic conditions, although membrane-bound subunits were used for both conditions. These data highlight the protein expression dynamics of phototrophy-related genes during the transition from respiration to phototrophy.
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Kawai S, Martinez JN, Lichtenberg M, Trampe E, Kühl M, Tank M, Haruta S, Nishihara A, Hanada S, Thiel V. In-Situ Metatranscriptomic Analyses Reveal the Metabolic Flexibility of the Thermophilic Anoxygenic Photosynthetic Bacterium Chloroflexus aggregans in a Hot Spring Cyanobacteria-Dominated Microbial Mat. Microorganisms 2021; 9:microorganisms9030652. [PMID: 33801086 PMCID: PMC8004040 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9030652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Chloroflexus aggregans is a metabolically versatile, thermophilic, anoxygenic phototrophic member of the phylum Chloroflexota (formerly Chloroflexi), which can grow photoheterotrophically, photoautotrophically, chemoheterotrophically, and chemoautotrophically. In hot spring-associated microbial mats, C. aggregans co-exists with oxygenic cyanobacteria under dynamic micro-environmental conditions. To elucidate the predominant growth modes of C. aggregans, relative transcription levels of energy metabolism- and CO2 fixation-related genes were studied in Nakabusa Hot Springs microbial mats over a diel cycle and correlated with microscale in situ measurements of O2 and light. Metatranscriptomic analyses indicated two periods with different modes of energy metabolism of C. aggregans: (1) phototrophy around midday and (2) chemotrophy in the early morning hours. During midday, C. aggregans mainly employed photoheterotrophy when the microbial mats were hyperoxic (400–800 µmol L−1 O2). In the early morning hours, relative transcription peaks of genes encoding uptake hydrogenase, key enzymes for carbon fixation, respiratory complexes as well as enzymes for TCA cycle and acetate uptake suggest an aerobic chemomixotrophic lifestyle. This is the first in situ study of the versatile energy metabolism of C. aggregans based on gene transcription patterns. The results provide novel insights into the metabolic flexibility of these filamentous anoxygenic phototrophs that thrive under dynamic environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shigeru Kawai
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
- Institute for Extra-cutting-edge Science and Technology Avant-garde Research (X-star), Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Kanagawa 237-0061, Japan
- Correspondence: (S.K.); (V.T.)
| | - Joval N. Martinez
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
- Department of Natural Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of St. La Salle, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental 6100, Philippines
| | - Mads Lichtenberg
- Department of Biology, Marine Biological Section, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, 3000 Helsingør, Denmark; (M.L.); (E.T.); (M.K.)
| | - Erik Trampe
- Department of Biology, Marine Biological Section, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, 3000 Helsingør, Denmark; (M.L.); (E.T.); (M.K.)
| | - Michael Kühl
- Department of Biology, Marine Biological Section, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, 3000 Helsingør, Denmark; (M.L.); (E.T.); (M.K.)
| | - Marcus Tank
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
- DSMZ—German Culture Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Culture, GmbH Inhoffenstraße 7B, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Shin Haruta
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
| | - Arisa Nishihara
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
- Bioproduction Research Institute, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Ibaraki 305-8566, Japan
| | - Satoshi Hanada
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
| | - Vera Thiel
- Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachioji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan; (J.N.M.); (M.T.); (S.H.); (A.N.); (S.H.)
- DSMZ—German Culture Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Culture, GmbH Inhoffenstraße 7B, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
- Correspondence: (S.K.); (V.T.)
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