By combining bioorthogonal non-canonical amino acid tagging, metaproteomics and stable isotope probing, we identified a rare and uncharacterized bacterium with a glycine-mediated metabolism for syntrophic acetate oxidation within an anaerobic microbiota. This approach shows promise to enrich proteins of rare and active microorganisms across diverse habitats to characterize their in situ ecophysiology.
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References
Schink, B. Energetics of syntrophic cooperation in methanogenic degradation. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 61, 262–280 (1997). A review article that presents the basis of syntrophy and its relevance to anaerobic microbiotas.
Westerholm, M., Dolfing, J. & Schnürer, A. Growth characteristics and thermodynamics of syntrophic acetate oxidizers. Environ. Sci. Technol. 53, 5512–5520 (2019). This paper discusses the signature slow growth and resistance to isolation of syntrophic acetate-oxidizing bacteria.
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This is a summary of: Friedline, S. et al. Activity-targeted metaproteomics uncovers rare syntrophic bacteria central to anaerobic community metabolism. Nat. Microbiol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02146-w (2025).
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Identifying rare and active species that drive carbon turnover in complex microbiotas. Nat Microbiol 10, 2659–2660 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02170-w
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02170-w
