Hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis

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Hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis is a form of chemosynthesis which uses hydrogen sulfide. [1] It is common in hydrothermal vent microbial communities [2] [3] Due to the lack of light in these environments this is predominant over photosynthesis [4]

Giant tube worms use bacteria in their trophosome to fix carbon dioxide (using hydrogen sulfide as their energy source) and produce sugars and amino acids. [5] Some reactions produce sulfur:

hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis: [1]
18H2S + 6CO2 + 3O2 → C6H12O6 (carbohydrate) + 12H2O + 18S

In the above process, hydrogen sulfide serves as a source of electrons for the reaction. [6] Instead of releasing oxygen gas while fixing carbon dioxide as in photosynthesis, hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis produces solid globules of sulfur in the process.

Mechanism of Action

In deep sea environments, different organisms have been observed to have the ability to oxidize reduced compounds such as hydrogen sulfide. [7] Oxidation is the loss of electrons in a chemical reaction. [8] Most chemosynthetic bacteria form symbiotic associations with other small eukaryotes [9] The electrons that are released from hydrogen sulfide will provide the energy to sustain a proton gradient across the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane. This movement of protons will eventually result in the production of adenosine triphosphate. The amount of energy derived from the process is also dependent on the type of final electron acceptor. [10]

Other Examples Of Chemosynthetic Organisms (using H2S as electron donor)

Across the world, researchers have observed different organisms in various locations capable of carrying out the process. Yang and colleagues in 2011 surveyed five Yellowstone thermal springs of varying depths and observed that the distribution of chemosynthetic microbes coincided with temperature as Sulfurihydrogenibiom was found at higher temperatures while Thiovirga inhabited cooler waters [11] Miyazaki et.al., in 2020 also found an endosymbiont capable of hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis which contained campylobacter species and a gastropod from the genus Alviniconcha oxidise hydrogen sulfide in the Indian Ocean [12] Furthermore, chemosynthetic bacteria such as purple sulfur bacteria have yellow globules of sulfur visible in their cytoplasm. [13]

Related Research Articles

Primary nutritional groups are groups of organisms, divided in relation to the nutrition mode according to the sources of energy and carbon, needed for living, growth and reproduction. The sources of energy can be light or chemical compounds; the sources of carbon can be of organic or inorganic origin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chemosynthesis</span> Biological process building organic matter using inorganic compounds as the energy source

In biochemistry, chemosynthesis is the biological conversion of one or more carbon-containing molecules and nutrients into organic matter using the oxidation of inorganic compounds or ferrous ions as a source of energy, rather than sunlight, as in photosynthesis. Chemoautotrophs, organisms that obtain carbon from carbon dioxide through chemosynthesis, are phylogenetically diverse. Groups that include conspicuous or biogeochemically important taxa include the sulfur-oxidizing Gammaproteobacteria, the Campylobacterota, the Aquificota, the methanogenic archaea, and the neutrophilic iron-oxidizing bacteria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydrothermal vent</span> Fissure in a planets surface from which heated water emits

Hydrothermal vents are fissures on the seabed from which geothermally heated water discharges. They are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart at mid-ocean ridges, ocean basins, and hotspots. Hydrothermal deposits are rocks and mineral ore deposits formed by the action of hydrothermal vents.

Anaerobic respiration is respiration using electron acceptors other than molecular oxygen (O2). Although oxygen is not the final electron acceptor, the process still uses a respiratory electron transport chain.

<i>Riftia</i> Giant tube worm (species of annelid)

Riftia pachyptila, commonly known as the giant tube worm and less commonly known as the giant beardworm, is a marine invertebrate in the phylum Annelida related to tube worms commonly found in the intertidal and pelagic zones. R. pachyptila lives on the floor of the Pacific Ocean near hydrothermal vents. The vents provide a natural ambient temperature in their environment ranging from 2 to 30 °C, and this organism can tolerate extremely high hydrogen sulfide levels. These worms can reach a length of 3 m, and their tubular bodies have a diameter of 4 cm (1.6 in).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulfate-reducing microorganism</span> Microorganisms that "breathe" sulfates

Sulfate-reducing microorganisms (SRM) or sulfate-reducing prokaryotes (SRP) are a group composed of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and sulfate-reducing archaea (SRA), both of which can perform anaerobic respiration utilizing sulfate (SO2−
4) as terminal electron acceptor, reducing it to hydrogen sulfide (H2S). Therefore, these sulfidogenic microorganisms "breathe" sulfate rather than molecular oxygen (O2), which is the terminal electron acceptor reduced to water (H2O) in aerobic respiration.

A chemotroph is an organism that obtains energy by the oxidation of electron donors in their environments. These molecules can be organic (chemoorganotrophs) or inorganic (chemolithotrophs). The chemotroph designation is in contrast to phototrophs, which use photons. Chemotrophs can be either autotrophic or heterotrophic. Chemotrophs can be found in areas where electron donors are present in high concentration, for instance around hydrothermal vents.

Photoheterotrophs are heterotrophic phototrophs—that is, they are organisms that use light for energy, but cannot use carbon dioxide as their sole carbon source. Consequently, they use organic compounds from the environment to satisfy their carbon requirements; these compounds include carbohydrates, fatty acids, and alcohols. Examples of photoheterotrophic organisms include purple non-sulfur bacteria, green non-sulfur bacteria, and heliobacteria. These microorganisms are ubiquitous in aquatic habitats, occupy unique niche-spaces, and contribute to global biogeochemical cycling. Recent research has also indicated that the oriental hornet and some aphids may be able to use light to supplement their energy supply.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulfur-reducing bacteria</span> Microorganisms able to reduce elemental sulfur to hydrogen sulfide

Sulfur-reducing bacteria are microorganisms able to reduce elemental sulfur (S0) to hydrogen sulfide (H2S). These microbes use inorganic sulfur compounds as electron acceptors to sustain several activities such as respiration, conserving energy and growth, in absence of oxygen. The final product of these processes, sulfide, has a considerable influence on the chemistry of the environment and, in addition, is used as electron donor for a large variety of microbial metabolisms. Several types of bacteria and many non-methanogenic archaea can reduce sulfur. Microbial sulfur reduction was already shown in early studies, which highlighted the first proof of S0 reduction in a vibrioid bacterium from mud, with sulfur as electron acceptor and H
2 as electron donor. The first pure cultured species of sulfur-reducing bacteria, Desulfuromonas acetoxidans, was discovered in 1976 and described by Pfennig Norbert and Biebel Hanno as an anaerobic sulfur-reducing and acetate-oxidizing bacterium, not able to reduce sulfate. Only few taxa are true sulfur-reducing bacteria, using sulfur reduction as the only or main catabolic reaction. Normally, they couple this reaction with the oxidation of acetate, succinate or other organic compounds. In general, sulfate-reducing bacteria are able to use both sulfate and elemental sulfur as electron acceptors. Thanks to its abundancy and thermodynamic stability, sulfate is the most studied electron acceptor for anaerobic respiration that involves sulfur compounds. Elemental sulfur, however, is very abundant and important, especially in deep-sea hydrothermal vents, hot springs and other extreme environments, making its isolation more difficult. Some bacteria – such as Proteus, Campylobacter, Pseudomonas and Salmonella – have the ability to reduce sulfur, but can also use oxygen and other terminal electron acceptors.

<i>Beggiatoa</i> Genus of bacteria

Beggiatoa is a genus of Gammaproteobacteria belonging to the order Thiotrichales, in the Pseudomonadota phylum. These bacteria form colorless filaments composed of cells that can be up to 200 µm in diameter, and are one of the largest prokaryotes on Earth. Beggiatoa are chemolithotrophic sulfur-oxidizers, using reduced sulfur species as an energy source. They live in sulfur-rich environments such as soil, both marine and freshwater, in the deep sea hydrothermal vents, and in polluted marine environments. In association with other sulfur bacteria, e.g. Thiothrix, they can form biofilms that are visible to the naked eye as mats of long white filaments; the white color is due to sulfur globules stored inside the cells.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Campylobacterota</span> Class of bacteria

Campylobacterota are a phylum of Gram-negative bacteria. Only a few genera have been characterized, including the curved to spirilloid Wolinella, Helicobacter, and Campylobacter. Until the 2021 revision of bacterial taxonomy by the ICSP, the entire phylum was classified within the Proteobacteria as the Epsilonproteobacteria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gammaproteobacteria</span> Class of bacteria

Gammaproteobacteria is a class of bacteria in the phylum Pseudomonadota. It contains about 250 genera, which makes it the most genus-rich taxon of the Prokaryotes. Several medically, ecologically, and scientifically important groups of bacteria belong to this class. All members of this class are Gram-negative. It is the most phylogenetically and physiologically diverse class of the Pseudomonadota.

Sulfur is metabolized by all organisms, from bacteria and archaea to plants and animals. Sulfur can have an oxidation state from -2 to +6 and is reduced or oxidized by a diverse range of organisms. The element is present in proteins, sulfate esters of polysaccharides, steroids, phenols, and sulfur-containing coenzymes.

<i>Thioploca</i> Genus of bacteria

Thioploca is a genus of filamentous sulphur-oxidizing bacteria, in the order Thiotrichales. They inhabit both marine and freshwater environments, forming vast communities off the Pacific coast of South America and in other areas with a high organic matter sedimentation and bottom waters rich in nitrate and poor in oxygen. Their cells contain large vacuoles that occupy more than 80% of the cellular volume, used to store nitrate to oxidize sulphur for anaerobic respiration in the absence of oxygen, an important characteristic of the genus. With cell diameters ranging from 15-40 µm, they are some of the largest bacteria known. They provide an important link between the nitrogen and sulphur cycles, because they use both sulfur and nitrogen compounds. They secrete a sheath of mucus which they use as a tunnel to travel between sulphide-containing sediment and nitrate-containing sea water.

The Guaymas Basin is the largest marginal rift basin located in the Gulf of California. It made up of the northern and southern trough and is linked to the Guaymas Fault to the north and the Carmen Fault to the south. The mid-ocean ridge system is responsible for the creation of the Guaymas Basin and giving it many features such as hydrothermal circulation and hydrocarbon seeps. Hydrothermal circulation is a significant process in the Guaymas Basin because it recycles energy and nutrients which are instrumental in sustaining the basin's rich ecosystem. Additionally, hydrocarbons and other organic matter are needed to feed a variety of organisms, many of which have adapted to tolerate the basin's high temperatures.

Sulfurimonas is a bacterial genus within the class of Campylobacterota, known for reducing nitrate, oxidizing both sulfur and hydrogen, and containing Group IV hydrogenases. This genus consists of four species: Sulfurimonas autorophica, Sulfurimonas denitrificans, Sulfurimonas gotlandica, and Sulfurimonas paralvinellae. The genus' name is derived from "sulfur" in Latin and "monas" from Greek, together meaning a “sulfur-oxidizing rod”. The size of the bacteria varies between about 1.5-2.5 μm in length and 0.5-1.0 μm in width. Members of the genus Sulfurimonas are found in a variety of different environments which include deep sea-vents, marine sediments, and terrestrial habitats. Their ability to survive in extreme conditions is attributed to multiple copies of one enzyme. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that members of the genus Sulfurimonas have limited dispersal ability and its speciation was affected by geographical isolation rather than hydrothermal composition. Deep ocean currents affect the dispersal of Sulfurimonas spp., influencing its speciation. As shown in the MLSA report of deep-sea hydrothermal vents Campylobacterota, Sulfurimonas has a higher dispersal capability compared with deep sea hydrothermal vent thermophiles, indicating allopatric speciation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine microbial symbiosis</span>

Microbial symbiosis in marine animals was not discovered until 1981. In the time following, symbiotic relationships between marine invertebrates and chemoautotrophic bacteria have been found in a variety of ecosystems, ranging from shallow coastal waters to deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Symbiosis is a way for marine organisms to find creative ways to survive in a very dynamic environment. They are different in relation to how dependent the organisms are on each other or how they are associated. It is also considered a selective force behind evolution in some scientific aspects. The symbiotic relationships of organisms has the ability to change behavior, morphology and metabolic pathways. With increased recognition and research, new terminology also arises, such as holobiont, which the relationship between a host and its symbionts as one grouping. Many scientists will look at the hologenome, which is the combined genetic information of the host and its symbionts. These terms are more commonly used to describe microbial symbionts.

Interspecies hydrogen transfer (IHT) is a form of interspecies electron transfer. It is a syntrophic process by which H2 is transferred from one organism to another, particularly in the rumen and other anaerobic environments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microbial oxidation of sulfur</span>

Microbial oxidation of sulfur is the oxidation of sulfur by microorganisms to build their structural components. The oxidation of inorganic compounds is the strategy primarily used by chemolithotrophic microorganisms to obtain energy to survive, grow and reproduce. Some inorganic forms of reduced sulfur, mainly sulfide (H2S/HS−) and elemental sulfur (S0), can be oxidized by chemolithotrophic sulfur-oxidizing prokaryotes, usually coupled to the reduction of oxygen (O2) or nitrate (NO3−). Anaerobic sulfur oxidizers include photolithoautotrophs that obtain their energy from sunlight, hydrogen from sulfide, and carbon from carbon dioxide (CO2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydrothermal vent microbial communities</span> Undersea unicellular organisms

The hydrothermal vent microbial community includes all unicellular organisms that live and reproduce in a chemically distinct area around hydrothermal vents. These include organisms in the microbial mat, free floating cells, or bacteria in an endosymbiotic relationship with animals. Chemolithoautotrophic bacteria derive nutrients and energy from the geological activity at Hydrothermal vents to fix carbon into organic forms. Viruses are also a part of the hydrothermal vent microbial community and their influence on the microbial ecology in these ecosystems is a burgeoning field of research.

References

  1. 1 2 "Chemolithotrophy | Boundless Microbiology". courses.lumenlearning.com. Retrieved 2020-04-11.
  2. ↑ Bernardino, Angelo F.; Levin, Lisa A.; Thurber, Andrew R.; Smith, Craig R. (2012). "Comparative Composition, Diversity and Trophic Ecology of Sediment Macrofauna at Vents, Seeps and Organic Falls". PLOS ONE. 7 (4): e33515. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...733515B. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0033515 . PMC   3319539 . PMID   22496753.
  3. ↑ "Hydrothermal Vents". Marine Society of Australia. Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Kádár E, Costa V, Santos RS, Powell JJ (July 2006). "Tissue partitioning of micro-essential metals in the vent bivalve Bathymodiolus azoricus and associated organisms (endosymbiont bacteria and a parasite polychaete) from geochemically distinct vents of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge". Journal of Sea Research. 56 (1): 45–52. Bibcode:2006JSR....56...45K. doi:10.1016/j.seares.2006.01.002.
  5. ↑ Biotechnology for Environmental Management and Resource Recovery. Springer. 2013. p. 179. ISBN   978-81-322-0876-1.
  6. ↑ Kalenitchenko, Dimitri; Le Bris, Nadine; Dadaglio, Laetitia; Peru, Erwan; Besserer, Arnaud; Galand, Pierre E. (February 2018). "Bacteria alone establish the chemical basis of the wood-fall chemosynthetic ecosystem in the deep-sea". The ISME Journal. 12 (2): 367–379. doi:10.1038/ismej.2017.163. ISSN   1751-7370. PMC   5776450 . PMID   28984846.
  7. ↑ Breusing, Corinna; Mitchell, Jessica; Delaney, Jennifer; Sylva, Sean P.; Seewald, Jeffrey S.; Girguis, Peter R.; Beinart, Roxanne A. (October 2020). "Physiological dynamics of chemosynthetic symbionts in hydrothermal vent snails". The ISME Journal. 14 (10): 2568–2579. doi:10.1038/s41396-020-0707-2. ISSN   1751-7370. PMC   7490688 . PMID   32616905.
  8. ↑ Silverstein, Todd P. (2011-03-01). "Oxidation and Reduction: Too Many Definitions?". Journal of Chemical Education. 88 (3): 279–281. Bibcode:2011JChEd..88..279S. doi:10.1021/ed100777q. ISSN   0021-9584.
  9. ↑ Sogin, E. Maggie; Leisch, Nikolaus; Dubilier, Nicole (2020-10-05). "Chemosynthetic symbioses". Current Biology. 30 (19): R1137–R1142. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.050 . ISSN   0960-9822. PMID   33022256. S2CID   222137874.
  10. ↑ Teske, A. (2009-01-01), "Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents", in Schaechter, Moselio (ed.), Encyclopedia of Microbiology (Third Edition), Oxford: Academic Press, pp. 80–90, ISBN   978-0-12-373944-5 , retrieved 2023-04-12
  11. ↑ Yang, Tingting; Lyons, Shawn; Aguilar, Carmen; Cuhel, Russell; Teske, Andreas (2011). "Microbial communities and chemosynthesis in yellowstone lake sublacustrine hydrothermal vent waters". Frontiers in Microbiology. 2: 130. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2011.00130 . ISSN   1664-302X. PMC   3116135 . PMID   21716640.
  12. ↑ Miyazaki, Junichi; Ikuta, Tetsuro; Watsuji, Tomo-O.; Abe, Mariko; Yamamoto, Masahiro; Nakagawa, Satoshi; Takaki, Yoshihiro; Nakamura, Kentaro; Takai, Ken (May 2020). "Dual energy metabolism of the Campylobacterota endosymbiont in the chemosynthetic snail Alviniconcha marisindica". The ISME Journal. 14 (5): 1273–1289. doi:10.1038/s41396-020-0605-7. ISSN   1751-7370. PMC   7174374 . PMID   32051527.
  13. ↑ The Purple Phototrophic Bacteria. Hunter, C. Neil. Dordrecht: Springer. 2009. ISBN   978-1-4020-8814-8. OCLC   304494953.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
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