Carbon monoxide utilisation by Thermanaeromonas species and description of Thermobium azorense gen. nov., sp. nov.

Syngas fermentation by carbon monoxide (CO)-utilising acetogens offers a sustainable route for converting gasified waste materials into value-added chemicals. In this study, we isolated a novel thermophilic CO-utilising bacterium, strain AZ2, from marine hydrothermal sediment collected on the island of São Miguel, Azores, Portugal. Strain AZ2 is an obligately anaerobic, spore-forming bacterium. Average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) analyses indicate that strain AZ2 represents a novel species within a previously uncharacterised lineage represented by the GTDB placeholder genus UBA 12545 in Neomoorellaceae. It is also the first cultured representative of this genus. Strain AZ2 was able to consume CO, producing acetate. We further demonstrated that its closest isolated relatives-Thermanaeromonas toyohensis and Thermanaeromonas sp. strain 9S-are capable of utilising CO, producing either acetate or hydrogen gas (H2). Additionally, we unveiled the genomic potential for CO utilisation within other members of the GTDB placeholder class DSM-521 (previously Moorellia) to which our isolate belongs, expanding the list of possible thermophilic CO-utilising acetogens. We propose that strain AZ2T represents the type strain of a novel genus and species, named Thermobium azorense gen. nov., sp. nov. (= DSM 121889T = JCM 39698T).