Acquisition of elemental sulfur by sulfur-oxidising Sulfolobales.

Elemental sulfur (S )-oxidising Sulfolobales (Archaea) dominate high-temperature acidic hot springs (>80°C, pH <4). However, genomic analyses of S -oxidising members of the Sulfolobales reveal a patchy distribution of genes encoding sulfur oxygenase reductase (SOR), an S disproportionating enzyme attributed to S oxidation. Here, we report the S -dependent growth of two Sulfolobales strains previously isolated from acidic hot springs in Yellowstone National Park, one of which associated with bulk S during growth and one that did not.