Hydrogen production by termite gut protists: characterization of iron hydrogenases of Parabasalian symbionts of the termite Coptotermes formosanus.

ABSTRACT: Cellulolytic flagellated protists in the guts of termites produce molecular hydrogen (H(2)) that is emitted by the termites; however, little is known about the physiology and biochemistry of H(2) production from cellulose in the gut symbiotic protists due to their formidable unculturability. In order to understand the molecular basis for H(2) production, we here identified two genes encoding proteins homologous to iron-only hydrogenases (Fe hydrogenases) in Pseudotrichonympha grassii, a large cellulolytic symbiont in the phylum Parabasalia, in the gut of the termite Coptotermes formosanus. The two Fe hydrogenases were phylogenetically distinct and had different N-terminal accessory domains. The long-form protein represented a phylogenetic lineage unique among eukaryotic Fe hydrogenases, wh

SUBMITTER: Inoue J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2043399 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature