Reduction, evolutionary pattern and positive selection of genes encoding formate dehydrogenase in Wood-Ljungdahl pathway of gastrointestinal acetogens suggests their adaptation to formate-rich habitats.

ABSTRACT: Acetogens are anaerobes using Wood-Ljungdahl pathway (WLP) as the terminal electron acceptor for both assimilation and dissimilation of CO₂ and widely distributed in diverse habitats. However, their habitat adaptation is often unclear. Given that bacterial genome evolution is often the result of environmental selective pressure, hereby we analysed gene copy number, phylogeny and selective pressure of genes involved in WLP within known genomes of 43 species to study the habitat adaption of gastrointestinal acetogens. The gene copy number of formate dehydrogenase (FDH) in gastrointestinal acetogens was much lower than that of non-gastrointestinal acetogens, and in five cases, no FDH genes were found in the genomes of five gastrointestinal acetogens, but that of the other WLP genes

SUBMITTER: Yao Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10103890 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature