In methanogenic environments Methanosarcinaceae are beside Methanosaetaceae the only acetate-consuming family of archaea and thus important contributors to the formation of the greenhouse gases methane and carbon dioxide. In this study, the carbon isotope fractionation during this process was determined for two species of the Methanosarcinaceae family, M. barkeri and M. acetivorans. The calcula...

Microbacterium barkeri strain 2011-R4 is a Gram-positive epiphyte which has been confirmed as a biocontrol agent against several plant pathogens in our previous studies. Here, we present the draft genome sequence of this strain, which was isolated from the rice rhizosphere in Tonglu city, Zhejiang province, China.

Currently, only one selectable marker is available for genetic studies in the archaeal genus Methanosarcina. Here we report the generation of selectable markers that encode resistance to pseudomonic acid (PA(r)) in Methanosarcina species by mutagenesis of the isoleucyl-tRNA synthetase gene (ileS) from Methanosarcina barkeri Fusaro. The M. barkeri ileS gene was obtained by screening of a genomic...

Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum has been reported to require nickel for growth and to contain high concentrations of a nickel tetrapyrrole designated factor F430. In this communication it is shown that all methanogenic bacteria investigated incorporated nickel during growth and also synthesized factor F430. This was also true for Methanobrevibacter smithii, which is dependent on acetate as...