Methylomes of Geobacter sulfurreducens Grown on Different Terminal Electron Acceptors

The Geobacter species evolved respiratory versatility to utilize a wide range of terminal electron acceptors. To explore this adaptive mechanism, Fe(III) citrate, hydrous ferric oxide, and fumarate were selected as electron acceptors, and the methylome and metabolome of Geobacter sulfurreducens PCA grown on each electron acceptor were investigated via third-generation, single-molecule real-time DNA sequencing.Results showed that the patterns of 4-methylcytosine (m4C) and 6-methyladenine (m6A) modification were all varied in different electron acceptor cultures. Moreover, genes (e.g., GSU0466 and GSU1467) with low expression levels generally had high methylation levels. These findings suggest that m4C and m6A modifications play a role in the adaption of G. sulfurreducens to diverse electron acceptors, and DNA methylation may be involved in the adaption mainly via gene expression regulation. Overall design: The methylomes of Geobacter sulfurreducens PCA grown on electron acceptors of Fe(III) citrate, hydrous ferric oxide, and fumarate were investigated via third-generation, single-molecule real-time DNA sequencing, respectively.