OUR RESEARCH

Ecology of Coenzyme B₁₂

Cobamides (“corrinoids”), the best-known example is vitamin B₁₂, are essential growth factors for most organisms. Remarkably, only subsets of the bacteria and archaea have the ability for de novo biosynthesis, raising interesting questions regarding the interactions between corrinoid producers and corrinoid auxotrophs (i.e., organisms, including humans, that must find an external source of corrinoid). We are exploring how the corrinoid-producing community affects (i.e., controls!) the activity of organisms that lack the ability to synthesize their own corrinoid. This research has applied science implications, as key organohalide-respiring bacteria (e.g., Dehalococcoides mccartyi) used in bioremediation strictly require external corrinoid for activity. Knowledge about the microbiology and the geochemical conditions that determine the corrinoid pool is needed to increase the activity corrinoid-auxotrophic Dehalococcoides mccartyi and accelerate detoxification at sites impacted with chlorinated contaminants.