Abstract
Safe geological disposal of radioactive waste requires a thorough understanding of geochemical conditions in the host formation. Boom Clay is a
potential candidate in Belgium, where active methanogenesis has been
detected in its deep subsurface, influencing the local geochemistry. However, the pathways driving this process and the characteristics of the methanogenic archaea involved remain unclear. We isolated a distinct archaeal strain from Boom Clay pore water and characterized it geno- and phenotypically. Isolate TD41E1-1 belongs to a novel species of the Methanosarcina genus, for which the name Methanosarcina hadiensis sp. nov. is proposed.
TD41E1-1 cells are coccus-shaped, irregularly sized cells enveloped by
extracellular polymer substances. Growth and substrate utilization experiments and genomic analysis demonstrated that the strain prefers methylated compounds or hydrogen as substrates for methane production.
Although it possesses a complete acetoclastic pathway, no growth was
observed in the presence of acetate in the tested conditions. Based on its
phylogenetic relation to other known Methanosarcina species and on the
presence of c-type cytochromes, it can be concluded that the strain likely
occupies an intermediate position between type I and type II Methanosarcina species. These findings provide valuable insights for assessing Boom
Clay’s suitability for geological disposal of radioactive waste.
potential candidate in Belgium, where active methanogenesis has been
detected in its deep subsurface, influencing the local geochemistry. However, the pathways driving this process and the characteristics of the methanogenic archaea involved remain unclear. We isolated a distinct archaeal strain from Boom Clay pore water and characterized it geno- and phenotypically. Isolate TD41E1-1 belongs to a novel species of the Methanosarcina genus, for which the name Methanosarcina hadiensis sp. nov. is proposed.
TD41E1-1 cells are coccus-shaped, irregularly sized cells enveloped by
extracellular polymer substances. Growth and substrate utilization experiments and genomic analysis demonstrated that the strain prefers methylated compounds or hydrogen as substrates for methane production.
Although it possesses a complete acetoclastic pathway, no growth was
observed in the presence of acetate in the tested conditions. Based on its
phylogenetic relation to other known Methanosarcina species and on the
presence of c-type cytochromes, it can be concluded that the strain likely
occupies an intermediate position between type I and type II Methanosarcina species. These findings provide valuable insights for assessing Boom
Clay’s suitability for geological disposal of radioactive waste.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e70004 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Environmental Microbiology |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 3 Dec 2024 |
Funding
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| University of Granada |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Microbiology
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics