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. 1979 Jan;137(1):524–530. doi: 10.1128/jb.137.1.524-530.1979

Growth of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodopseudomonas capsulata chemoautotrophically in darkness with H2 as the energy source.

M T Madigan, H Gest
PMCID: PMC218479  PMID: 216663

Abstract

The phototrophic bacterium Rhodopseudomonas capsulata was found to be capable of growing chemoautotrophically under aerobic conditions in darkness. Growth was strictly dependent on the presence of H2 as the source of energy and reducing power, O2 as the terminal electron acceptor for energy transduction, and CO2 as the sole carbon source; under optimal conditions the generation time was about 6 h. Chemoautotrophically grown cells showed a relatively high content of bacteriochlorophyll a and intracytoplasmic membranes (chromatophores). Experiments with various mutants of R. capsulata, affected in electron transport, indicate that either of the two terminal oxidases of this bacterium can participate in the energy-yielding oxidation of H2. The ability of R. capsulata to multiply in at least five different physiological growth modes suggests that it is one of the most metabolically versatile procaryotes known.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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