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Distribution and environmental significance of nitrite-dependent anaerobic methane-oxidising bacteria in natural ecosystems

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Abstract

Nitrite-dependent anaerobic methane oxidation (N-DAMO) is a recently discovered process that is performed by “Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera” (M. oxyfera). This process constitutes a unique association between the two major global elements essential to life, carbon and nitrogen, and may act as an important and overlooked sink of the greenhouse gas methane. In recent years, more and more studies have reported the distribution of M. oxyfera-like bacteria and the occurrence of N-DAMO process in different natural ecosystems, including freshwater lakes, rivers, wetlands and marine ecosystems. Previous studies have estimated that a total of 2 %–6 % of current worldwide methane flux in wetlands could be consumed via the N-DAMO process. These findings indicate that N-DAMO is indeed a previously overlooked methane sink in natural ecosystems. Given the worldwide increase in anthropogenic nitrogen pollution, the N-DAMO process as a methane sink in reducing global warming could become more important in the future. The present mini-review summarises the current knowledge of the ecological distribution of M. oxyfera-like bacteria and the potential importance of the N-DAMO process in reducing methane emissions in various natural ecosystems. The potential influence of environmental factors on the N-DAMO process is also discussed.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Startup Foundation for Introducing Talent of NUIST (no. S8113112001), the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD) and the Shanghai Tongji Gao Tingyao Environmental Science and Technology Development Foundation.

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  1. Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Agricultural Meteorology, Collaborative Innovation Center on Forecast and Evaluation of Meteorological Disasters, College of Applied Meteorology, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China

    Li-dong Shen, Hong-sheng Wu & Zhi-qiu Gao

  2. State Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Boundary Layer Physics and Atmospheric Chemistry, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China

    Zhi-qiu Gao

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  1. Li-dong Shen
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  2. Hong-sheng Wu
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Correspondence to Li-dong Shen.

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Shen, Ld., Wu, Hs. & Gao, Zq. Distribution and environmental significance of nitrite-dependent anaerobic methane-oxidising bacteria in natural ecosystems. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 99, 133–142 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-014-6200-y

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