Chlorine redox chemistry is widespread in microbiology.

Chlorine is abundant in cells and biomolecules, yet the biology of chlorine oxidation and reduction is poorly understood. Some bacteria encode the enzyme chlorite dismutase (Cld), which detoxifies chlorite (ClO) by converting it to chloride (Cl) and molecular oxygen (O). Cld is highly specific for chlorite and aside from low hydrogen peroxide activity has no known alternative substrate.

Benchmarking Community-Wide Estimates of Growth Potential from Metagenomes Using Codon Usage Statistics.

Trait inference from mixed-species assemblages is a central problem in microbial ecology. Frequently, sequencing information from an environment is available, but phenotypic measurements from individual community members are not. With the increasing availability of molecular data for microbial communities, bioinformatic approaches that map metagenome to (meta)phenotype are needed.

The biogeochemical cycling of chlorine.

Chlorine has important roles in the Earth's systems. In different forms, it helps balance the charge and osmotic potential of cells, provides energy for microorganisms, mobilizes metals in geologic fluids, alters the salinity of waters, and degrades atmospheric ozone. Despite this importance, there has not been a comprehensive summary of chlorine's geobiology.

The diversity and evolution of microbial dissimilatory phosphite oxidation.

Phosphite is the most energetically favorable chemotrophic electron donor known, with a half-cell potential (') of -650 mV for the PO/PO couple. Since the discovery of microbial dissimilatory phosphite oxidation (DPO) in 2000, the environmental distribution, evolution, and diversity of DPO microorganisms (DPOMs) have remained enigmatic, as only two species have been identified. Here, metagenomic sequencing of phosphite-enriched microbial communities enabled the genome reconstruction and metabolic characterization of 21 additional DPOMs.

An uncharacterized clade in the DMSO reductase family of molybdenum oxidoreductases is a new type of chlorate reductase.

The dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) reductase family of enzymes has many subfamilies catalysing unique biogeochemical reactions. It also has many uncharacterized subfamilies. Comparative genomics predicted one such subfamily to participate in a key step of the chlorine cycle because of a conserved genetic association with chlorite dismutase, implying they produce chlorite through chlorate or perchlorate reduction.

An iron (II) dependent oxygenase performs the last missing step of plant lysine catabolism.

Despite intensive study, plant lysine catabolism beyond the 2-oxoadipate (2OA) intermediate remains unvalidated. Recently we described a missing step in the D-lysine catabolism of Pseudomonas putida in which 2OA is converted to D-2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG) via hydroxyglutarate synthase (HglS), a DUF1338 family protein. Here we solve the structure of HglS to 1.

Identification of a parasitic symbiosis between respiratory metabolisms in the biogeochemical chlorine cycle.

A key step in the chlorine cycle is the reduction of perchlorate (ClO) and chlorate (ClO) to chloride by microbial respiratory pathways. Perchlorate-reducing bacteria and chlorate-reducing bacteria differ in that the latter cannot use perchlorate, the most oxidized chlorine compound. However, a recent study identified a bacterium with the chlorate reduction pathway dominating a community provided only perchlorate.

Metagenomics-guided analysis of microbial chemolithoautotrophic phosphite oxidation yields evidence of a seventh natural CO fixation pathway.

Dissimilatory phosphite oxidation (DPO), a microbial metabolism by which phosphite (HPO) is oxidized to phosphate (PO), is the most energetically favorable chemotrophic electron-donating process known. Only one DPO organism has been described to date, and little is known about the environmental relevance of this metabolism. In this study, we used 16S rRNA gene community analysis and genome-resolved metagenomics to characterize anaerobic wastewater treatment sludge enrichments performing DPO coupled to CO reduction.

(Per)chlorate in Biology on Earth and Beyond.

Respiration of perchlorate and chlorate [collectively, (per)chlorate] was only recognized in the last 20 years, yet substantial advances have been made in our understanding of the underlying metabolisms. Although it was once considered solely anthropogenic, pervasive natural sources, both terrestrial and extraterrestrial, indicate an ancient (per)chlorate presence across our solar system. These discoveries stimulated interest in (per)chlorate microbiology, and the application of advanced approaches highlights exciting new facets.