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In a search for potential ethanologens, waste compost was screened for ethanol-tolerant thermophilic microorganisms. Two thermophilic bacterial strains, M5EXG and M10EXG, with tolerance of 5 and 10% (v/v) ethanol, respectively, were isolated. Both isolates are facultative anaerobic, non-spore forming, non-motile, catalase-positive, oxidase-negative, Gram-negative rods that are capable of utilizing a range of carbon sources including arabinose, galactose, mannose, glucose and xylose and produce low amounts of ethanol, acetate and lactate. Growth of both isolates was observed in fully defined minimal media within the temperature range 50-80°C and pH 6.0-8.0. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rDNA sequences revealed that both isolates clustered with members of subgroup 5 of the genus Bacillus. G+C contents and DNA-DNA relatedness of M5EXG and M10EXG revealed that they are strains belonging to Geobacillus thermoglucosidasius. However, physiological and biochemical differences were evident when isolates M5EXG and M10EXG were compared with G. thermoglucosidasius type strain (DSM 2542^T). The new thermophilic, ethanol-tolerant strains of G. thermoglucosidasius may be candidates for ethanol production at elevated temperatures.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	Geobacillus, thermophiles, ethanol production, ethanol-tolerance, waste compost
Research Division:	Biological Sciences
Research Group:	Evolutionary biology
Research Field:	Phylogeny and comparative analysis
Objective Division:	Energy
Objective Group:	Environmentally sustainable energy activities
Objective Field:	Environmentally sustainable energy activities not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Bowman, JP (Associate Professor John Bowman)
ID Code:	41944
Year Published:	2006
Web of Science® Times Cited:	41
Deposited By:	Agricultural Science
Deposited On:	2006-08-01
Last Modified:	2012-11-06
Downloads:	5 View Download Statistics