Phototrophic extracellular electron uptake is linked to carbon dioxide fixation in the bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris

Michael S. Guzman, Karthikeyan Rengasamy, Michael M. Binkley, Clive Jones, Tahina Onina Ranaivoarisoa, Rajesh Singh, David A. Fike, J. Mark Meacham and Arpita Bose ()
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Michael S. Guzman: Washington University in St. Louis
Karthikeyan Rengasamy: Washington University in St. Louis
Michael M. Binkley: Washington University in St. Louis
Clive Jones: Washington University in St. Louis
Tahina Onina Ranaivoarisoa: Washington University in St. Louis
Rajesh Singh: Washington University in St. Louis
David A. Fike: Washington University in St. Louis
J. Mark Meacham: Washington University in St. Louis
Arpita Bose: Washington University in St. Louis

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Extracellular electron uptake (EEU) is the ability of microbes to take up electrons from solid-phase conductive substances such as metal oxides. EEU is performed by prevalent phototrophic bacterial genera, but the electron transfer pathways and the physiological electron sinks are poorly understood. Here we show that electrons enter the photosynthetic electron transport chain during EEU in the phototrophic bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris TIE-1. Cathodic electron flow is also correlated with a highly reducing intracellular redox environment. We show that reducing equivalents are used for carbon dioxide (CO2) fixation, which is the primary electron sink. Deletion of the genes encoding ruBisCO (the CO2-fixing enzyme of the Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle) leads to a 90% reduction in EEU. This work shows that phototrophs can directly use solid-phase conductive substances for electron transfer, energy transduction, and CO2 fixation.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09377-6

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