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REVIEW article

Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Microbiotechnology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1417714
This article is part of the Research Topic Microbial Biotechnologies for Efficient Wastewater Treatment and Resource Recovery View all 5 articles

Anoxygenic photosynthesis with emphasis on green sulfur bacteria and a perspective for hydrogen sulfide detoxification of anoxic environments

Provisionally accepted
  • 1 Masaryk University, Brno, South Moravia, Czechia
  • 2 University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Brno, South Moravia, Czechia
  • 3 Delta University for Science and Technology, Al Mansurah, Dakahlia, Egypt
  • 4 Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland
  • 5 University of Vienna, Vienna, Vienna, Austria

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The bacterial light-dependent energy metabolism can be divided into two types: oxygenic and anoxygenic photosynthesis. Bacterial oxygenic photosynthesis is similar to plants and is characteristic for cyanobacteria. Bacterial anoxygenic photosynthesis is performed by anoxygenic phototrophs, especially green sulfur bacteria (GSB; family Chlorobiaceae) and purple sulfur bacteria (PSB; family Chromatiaceae). In anoxygenic photosynthesis, hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is used as the main electron donor, which differs from plants or cyanobacteria where water is the main source of electrons. This review mainly focuses on the microbiology of GSB, which may be found in water or soil ecosystems where H2S is abundant. GSB oxidize H2S to elemental sulfur. GSB possess special structures – chlorosomes – wherein photosynthetic pigments are located. Chlorosomes are vesicles that are surrounded by a lipid monolayer that serve as light-collecting antennas. The carbon source of GSB is carbon dioxide which is assimilated through the reverse tricarboxylic acid cycle. Our review provides a thorough introduction to the comparative eco-physiology of GSB and discusses selected application possibilities of anoxygenic phototrophs in the fields of environmental management, bioremediation and biotechnology.

    Keywords: bacterial photosynthesis, anoxygenic bacteria, Hydrogen Sulfide, detoxification, anaerobes, Biotechnology

    Received: 15 Apr 2024; Accepted: 12 Jun 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Kushkevych, Procházka, Monika, Dordevic, Abd El-Salam and Rittmann. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Ivan Kushkevych, Masaryk University, Brno, 601 77, South Moravia, Czechia
    Simon K. Rittmann, University of Vienna, Vienna, 1010, Vienna, Austria

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.