Evidence-graded regulatory mechanisms of methanogenesis in model archaea
Abstract
Methanogenesis is an archaeal energy metabolism that often operates near the thermodynamic limits of ATP conservation. Its rate therefore depends not only on pathway chemistry but also on regulatory processes that allocate enzymes, electron carriers, and substrates as environmental conditions change. Here, we evaluate experimentally supported transcriptional, signal-transduction and post-transcriptional mechanisms in methanogenic archaea, classifying evidence as direct biochemical or promoter interaction, genetic dependence, expression association or hypothesis. Molecularly resolved links include AmzR ligand-dependent promoter binding, HdrR activation of hdrBCA, MreA binding to selected promoters, NrpR control of nitrogen genes, and cysteine-dependent MsvR promoter binding. In contrast, H2-responsive transcription and the proposed MsmS/RdmS phosphorelays remain incompletely connected to their proximal signals or downstream targets. RNA stability, RNA processing and regulatory small RNAs provide an additional layer of control, and single-cell imaging reveals temporally ordered yet heterogeneous expression states. However, most mechanistic evidence derives from a small number of Methanosarcina and Methanococcus models. These studies provide a framework for testing how regulation shapes cellular methane-production rates, but its quantitative contribution to community methane production and net atmospheric emissions remains unresolved.
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BibTeX
@article{cha2026evidencegraded,
title = {{Evidence-graded regulatory mechanisms of methanogenesis in model archaea}},
author = {Guihong Cha and Yugeng Liu and Chunhui Wei and Zhiguo Huang},
journal = {Frontiers in Microbiology},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3389/fmicb.2026.1949712},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2026.1949712},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Evidence-graded regulatory mechanisms of methanogenesis in model archaea
AU - Guihong Cha
AU - Yugeng Liu
AU - Chunhui Wei
AU - Zhiguo Huang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/02
JO - Frontiers in Microbiology
DO - 10.3389/fmicb.2026.1949712
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2026.1949712
AB - Methanogenesis is an archaeal energy metabolism that often operates near the thermodynamic limits of ATP conservation. Its rate therefore depends not only on pathway chemistry but also on regulatory processes that allocate enzymes, electron carriers, and substrates as environmental conditions change. Here, we evaluate experimentally supported transcriptional, signal-transduction and post-transcriptional mechanisms in methanogenic archaea, classifying evidence as direct biochemical or promoter interaction, genetic dependence, expression association or hypothesis. Molecularly resolved links include AmzR ligand-dependent promoter binding, HdrR activation of hdrBCA, MreA binding to selected promoters, NrpR control of nitrogen genes, and cysteine-dependent MsvR promoter binding. In contrast, H2-responsive transcription and the proposed MsmS/RdmS phosphorelays remain incompletely connected to their proximal signals or downstream targets. RNA stability, RNA processing and regulatory small RNAs provide an additional layer of control, and single-cell imaging reveals temporally ordered yet heterogeneous expression states. However, most mechanistic evidence derives from a small number of Methanosarcina and Methanococcus models. These studies provide a framework for testing how regulation shapes cellular methane-production rates, but its quantitative contribution to community methane production and net atmospheric emissions remains unresolved.
SN - 1664-302X
ER -