Hydrogenomics of the extremely thermophilic bacterium Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus

Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus is an extremely thermophilic, Gram-positive anaerobe, which ferments cellulose-, hemicellulose- and pectin-containing biomass to acetate, CO2 and hydrogen. Its broad substrate range, high hydrogen-producing capacity, and ability to co-utilize glucose and xylose, make this bacterium an attractive candidate for microbial bioenergy production. Glycolytic pathways and an ABC-type sugar transporter were significantly up-regulated during growth on glucose and xylose, indicating that C. saccharolyticus co-ferments these sugars unimpeded by glucose-based catabolite repression. The capacity to simultaneously process and utilize a range of carbohydrates associated with biomass feedstocks represents a highly desirable feature of a lignocellulose-utilizing, biofuel-producing bacterium. Keywords: substrate response C. saccharolyticus was subcultured (overnight) 3 times on the substrate of interest in modified DSMZ 640 medium before inoculating a pH-controlled (pH = 7) 1-liter fermentor containing 4 gram substrate per liter. Cells were grown at 70 °C until mid-logarithmic phase (~OD660 = 0.3-0.4) and harvested by centrifugation and rapid cooling to 4 °C and stored at -80 °C. To elucidate the central carbon metabolic pathways and their regulation, transcriptome analysis was performed after growth on glucose, xylose and a 1:1 mixture of both substrates. L-Rhamnose, which was likely to follow another pathway, was used as a reference substrate.