The unaccounted yet abundant nitrous oxide-reducing microbial community: a potential nitrous oxide sink.

ABSTRACT: Nitrous oxide (N(2)O) is a major radiative forcing and stratospheric ozone-depleting gas emitted from terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. It can be transformed to nitrogen gas (N(2)) by bacteria and archaea harboring the N(2)O reductase (N(2)OR), which is the only known N(2)O sink in the biosphere. Despite its crucial role in mitigating N(2)O emissions, knowledge of the N(2)OR in the environment remains limited. Here, we report a comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of the nosZ gene coding the N(2)OR in genomes retrieved from public databases. The resulting phylogeny revealed two distinct clades of nosZ, with one unaccounted for in studies investigating N(2)O-reducing communities. Examination of N(2)OR structural elements not considered in the phylogeny revealed that the two clades differ i

SUBMITTER: Jones CM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3554408 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature