Acetitomaculum ruminis 139BT

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of Acetitomaculum ruminis 139B. Source: Yuqi Li

Introduction

Acetitomaculum ruminis 139B^T (DSM 5522, ATCC 43876) is a strictly anaerobic, Gram-positive, rod-shaped bacterium belonging to the family Lachnospiraceae. It was originally isolated from the rumen of cattle and first described by Greening and Leedle in 1989 [1]. The strain 139B^T is designated as the type strain of A. ruminis [1, 2].

A. ruminis is an acetogenic bacterium capable of utilizing hydrogen (H₂) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) to produce acetate through the Wood–Ljungdahl pathway [1, 3]. It can also utilize organic substrates for growth. As a hydrogen-consuming acetogen, A. ruminis may compete with methanogenic archaea for hydrogen in the rumen. However, methanogenesis is generally considered the dominant hydrogen disposal pathway under typical rumen conditions [3, 4].

The genome sequence of A. ruminis 139B^T is available through the Hungate1000 project, which provides genomic resources for understanding the metabolic capabilities and ecological roles of rumen microorganisms [5]. Its acetogenic metabolism makes this bacterium particularly interesting for studying rumen hydrogen utilization and potential alternative pathways to methane formation.

LPSN: Acetitomaculum ruminis (Greening and Leedle, 1989).

NCBI: Acetitomaculum ruminis.

GTDB: Acetitomaculum ruminis.

Type strain: 139B^T (= DSM 5522 = ATCC 43876).

Global Methane Hub Metadata

Origin:	Illinois, Mackie Lab
Sequenced by:	Yuqi Li
Assembled by:	William G. Alexander
Methylome called by:	William G. Alexander
MIC and Culturing Conditions by:	Yuqi Li

Genome

Circos plot of Acetitomaculum ruminis 139B. Source: Yuqi Li

Methylome

Motif	Percent methylated
CTGC(6mA)G	95.68%
TA(6mA)GNNNNNNTCC	95.61%
GG(6mA)NNNNNNCTTA	96.1%
G(6mA)TGNNNNNNTCC	84.95%
GG(6mA)NNNNNNCATT	92.38%
G(6mA)TCG	89.82%
A(6mA)TGNNNNNNTCC	96.19%
GG(6mA)NNNNNNCATT	90.36%
GAT(5mC)	32.66%

Culturing Conditions

Acetitomaculum ruminis 139B^T can be cultivated in M2GSC medium at 37 °C under strictly anaerobic conditions. Cultures are maintained in an anaerobic chamber containing 95% CO₂ and 5% H₂.

Antibiotic MIC Tests

MIC tests of Acetitomaculum ruminis 139B. Source: Yuqi Li

Antibiotic	Concentration (μg/mL)
Ampicillin	Resistant (>200 μg/mL)
Kanamycin	Resistant (>200 μg/mL)
Chloramphenicol	1.03
Tetracycline	0.19
Gentamicin	4.75
Streptomycin	Resistant (>200 μg/mL)
Erythromycin	2.67

External Links

[1] Greening RC, Leedle JAZ. 1989. Enrichment and isolation of Acetitomaculum ruminis, gen. nov., sp. nov.: acetogenic bacteria from the bovine rumen. Archives of Microbiology 151: 399–406. doi: 10.1007/BF00416597.

[2] DSMZ – German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures. Acetitomaculum ruminis DSM 5522. https://www.dsmz.de/collection/catalogue/details/culture/DSM-5522.

[3] Ragsdale SW, Pierce E. 2008. Acetogenesis and the Wood–Ljungdahl pathway of CO₂ fixation. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) – Proteins and Proteomics 1784: 1873–1898. doi: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2008.08.012.

[4] Ungerfeld EM. 2020. Metabolic hydrogen flows in rumen fermentation: principles and possibilities of interventions. Frontiers in Microbiology 11: 589. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00589.

[5] Seshadri R, Leahy SC, Attwood GT, et al. 2018. Cultivation and sequencing of rumen microbiome members from the Hungate1000 Collection. Nature Biotechnology 36: 359–367. doi: 10.1038/nbt.4110.