Transcriptional analysis of respiratory pathways in the hyperthermophilic crenarchaeon Pyrobaculum aerophilum

We compared global transcriptional patterns in Pyrobaculum aerophilum cultures with oxygen, nitrate, arsenate and ferric iron as respiratory electron acceptors to identify genes and regulatory patterns that differentiate these pathways. Keywords: Time course study with different respiratory electron acceptors To focus the microarrays on genes that are specifically affected by changes in terminal electron acceptors we analyzed gene expression in time courses with cultures shifted from aerobic growth to either NO3-, As(V), Fe(III)-citrate, or additional O2. Gene expression and substrate usage were measured at three time points (2.5, 4.5, and 7.5 hours), allowing sufficient time for changes in gene expression, while restricting cultures to a maximum of one or two cell divisions.