Hydrogen Does Not Appear To Be a Major Electron Donor for Symbiosis with the Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vent Tubeworm Riftia pachyptila.

ABSTRACT: Use of hydrogen gas (H₂) as an electron donor is common among free-living chemolithotrophic microorganisms. Given the presence of this dissolved gas at deep-sea hydrothermal vents, it has been suggested that it may also be a major electron donor for the free-living and symbiotic chemolithoautotrophic bacteria that are the primary producers at these sites. Giant Riftia pachyptila siboglinid tubeworms and their symbiotic bacteria ("Candidatus Endoriftia persephone") dominate many vents in the Eastern Pacific, and their use of sulfide as a major electron donor has been documented. Genes encoding hydrogenase are present in the "Ca Endoriftia persephone" genome, and proteome data suggest that these genes are expressed. In this study, high-pressure respirometry of

SUBMITTER: Mitchell JH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6912073 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature