Living Off the Land in Space

Methane Production by Facultative Anaerobic Wood-Rot Fungi via a New Halomethane-Dependent Pathway

“…Previous studies have suggested that CH 3 · is involved in the methylation of substrates such as benzoic acid and phenols by ( O -) methyltransferase ( 53 ) and combines with H + and e − to form CH 4 in S. commune ( 54 , 55 ). Moreover, the methylation reaction mediated by DH does not require oxygen, energy, or coenzyme ( 51 ), and the synthesis of CH 4 from CH 3 ·, H + and e − is also typically exergonic ( 56 ). We therefore hypothesize that the final step of fungal CH 4 formation proceeds through free radical production by DH, where CH 4 is a product of CH 3 Cl metabolism.…”