TY - JOUR TI - Effects of H2 and formate on growth yield and regulation of methanogenesis in Methanococcus maripaludis. AU - Costa, Kyle C. AU - Yoon, Sung Ho AU - Pan, Min AU - Burn, June A. AU - Baliga, Nitin S. AU - Leigh, John A. T2 - Journal of bacteriology AB - Hydrogenotrophic methanogenic Archaea are defined by an H2 requirement for growth. Despite this requirement, many hydrogenotrophs are also capable of growth with formate as an electron donor for methanogenesis. While certain responses of these organisms to hydrogen availability have been characterized, responses to formate starvation have not been reported. Here we report that during continuous culture of Methanococcus maripaludis under defined nutrient conditions, growth yields relative to methane production decreased markedly with either H2 excess or formate excess. Analysis of the growth yields of several mutants suggests that this phenomenon occurs independently of the storage of intracellular carbon or a transcriptional response to methanogenesis. Using microarray analysis, we found that the expression of genes encoding coenzyme F420-dependent steps of methanogenesis, including one of two formate dehydrogenases, increased with H2 starvation but with formate occurred at high levels regardless of limitation or excess. One gene, encoding H2-dependent methylene-tetrahydromethanopterin dehydrogenase, decreased in expression with either H2 limitation or formate limitation. Expression of genes for the second formate dehydrogenase, molybdenum-dependent formylmethanofuran dehydrogenase, and molybdenum transport increased specifically with formate limitation. Of the two formate dehydrogenases, only the first could support growth on formate in batch culture where formate was in excess. DA - 2013/04//undefined PY - 2013 DO - 10.1128/JB.02141-12 VL - 195 IS - 7 SP - 1456 EP - 1462 J2 - J Bacteriol LA - eng SN - 1098-5530 0021-9193 KW - *Gene Expression Regulation, Archaeal KW - Culture Media/chemistry KW - Formates/*metabolism KW - Gene Expression Profiling KW - Hydrogen/*metabolism KW - Methane/*metabolism KW - Methanococcus/*growth & development/*metabolism KW - Microarray Analysis KW - Transcription, Genetic ER -