Methanogens utilize an unusual energy-conserving electron transport chain that involves reduction of a limited number of electron acceptors to methane (CH4) gas. Previous biochemical studies suggest that the proton pumping ...

The bacterial population of the vaginal canal is a primate infant’s first exposure to the microbial community inhabiting the outside world. Yet, little is known about this community and the effect it might have on the ...

Biotin is an essential enzyme cofactor required by all three domains of life. It functions as a covalently-bound prosthetic group, which mediates the transport of CO2 in many vital metabolic carboxylation, decarboxylation ...

Vaccinia virus (VV), a member of the poxvirus family of double-stranded DNA viruses, is well-known as a highly effective vaccine against variola virus, the causative agent of smallpox. Poxviruses encode many strategies ...

Virus-host interactions are important for shaping microbial diversity in natural environments. Viruses impact their hosts through predation and also through gene flow. The recently discovered microbial CRISPR immune system ...

Our investigations led to the discovery of new biosynthetic intermediates and revealed inaccuracies in the previously published pathway. Specifically, this thesis work established that step III of PTT biosynthesis is the ...

Genetic analysis of the methylotrophic methanogenesis in Methanosarcina acetivorans has revealed a complex system for the utilization of methanol. M. acetivorans contains three isozymes of mtaCB and two of mtaA, encoding ...

Methane producing archaea have a vital role in the global carbon cycle by facilitating the conversion of organic carbon into CO2 and methane. Species of Methanosarcina are unique among methanogens due to a versatile ...

Phosphate is an essential nutrient for all organisms. Therefore, transporters and regulatory systems in bacterial pathogens enabling phosphate acquisition within the host are important for virulence. However, the contribution ...

Base pairing small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) are important post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression in bacteria. These sRNAs deploy novel mechanisms to regulate mRNA targets leading to various physiological outcomes ...