Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Life with carbon monoxide.

Stephen W Ragsdale1

  • 1Department of Biochemistry, Beadle Center, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0664, USA. sragsdale1@unl.edu

Critical Reviews in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
|December 15, 2004
PubMed
Summary

Microbes utilize carbon monoxide (CO) for growth via the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway. Key enzymes like CO dehydrogenase (CODH) and acetyl-CoA synthase (ACS) enable CO metabolism and carbon synthesis.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Investigating weak axial ligation in corrinoids by X-ray absorption spectroscopy: Implications for corrinoid iron-sulfur protein.

Journal of inorganic biochemistry·2026
Same author

Heme and CO metabolism by the canonical human heme oxygenases.

Journal of inorganic biochemistry·2025
Same author

Structural and Mechanistic Advances in the Chemistry of Methyl-Coenzyme M Reductase (MCR).

Accounts of chemical research·2025
Same author

S-adenosyl-L-methionine is the unexpected methyl donor for the methylation of mercury by the membrane-associated HgcAB complex.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2024
Same author

Nature-Inspired Radical Pyridoxal-Mediated C-C Bond Formation.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2024
Same author

An alcove at the acetyl-CoA synthase nickel active site is required for productive substrate CO binding and anaerobic carbon fixation.

The Journal of biological chemistry·2024

Area of Science:

  • Microbial metabolism
  • Biochemistry
  • Bioenergetics

Background:

  • Many microbes can utilize carbon monoxide (CO) as their sole source of carbon and energy.
  • This capability is linked to the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway of autotrophic growth.
  • Understanding CO metabolism provides insights into early life and microbial adaptation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the origin and discovery of microbial CO metabolism.
  • To explore the mechanisms and enzymes involved in CO utilization.
  • To highlight recent structural and mechanistic insights into CO dehydrogenase (CODH) and acetyl-CoA synthase (ACS).

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of microbial CO metabolism.
  • Analysis of the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway.
  • Examination of enzyme structures (CODH, ACS) and associated catalytic mechanisms.
  • Discussion of CO sensing and gene regulation.

Main Results:

  • CO metabolism is ancient and relies on specific enzymes like CODH and ACS.
  • CODH can oxidize CO to CO2 or reduce CO2 to CO, linking to acetyl-CoA synthesis via ACS.
  • Novel bio-organometallic mechanisms and a gas channel in CODH/ACS have been elucidated through structural studies.

Conclusions:

  • Microbial utilization of CO is a sophisticated process involving unique metalloenzymes and pathways.
  • Recent structural and mechanistic studies offer deep insights into CO transformation and cellular energy generation.
  • Further research into CO metabolism can inform synthetic biology and astrobiology.

Related Experiment Videos