Group Elisabeth Härtig
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The anaerobic adaptation of Bacillus subtilis
Beside aerobic growth the gram-positive soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis is also able to grow under anaerobic conditions either by utilizing nitrate as an alternative electron acceptor or by fermentation in the absence of electron acceptors. The main signal for altering the metabolic activity is the availability of oxygen. The switch between aerobic and anaerobic metabolism in B. subtilis is regulated mainly at the transcriptional level. In our group we analyse how B. subtilis is able to adapt to anaerobic growth conditions.
The regulatory networks for the adaptation of Dinoroseobacter shibae to low iron and oxygen tension
Another research focus displays the anaerobic energy metabolism of the marine bacterium Dinoroseobacter shibae. D. shibae belongs to the ecological relevant Roseobacter clade. Members of this clade are found widespread and in high frequency in all habitats of the oceans. The group belongs to the a-Proteobacteria and after today's level of knowledge it is the most important group of heterotrophic sea bacteria which is coherent in itself with an unusually huge metabolic variety. Members of this bacterial group are significantly involved in global biogeochemical cycle, like the carbon and the sulphur cycle.