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Alfons J. M. Stams

Bio: Alfons J. M. Stams is an academic researcher from Wageningen University and Research Centre. The author has contributed to research in topics: Methanogenesis & Propionate. The author has an hindex of 93, co-authored 464 publications receiving 30395 citations. Previous affiliations of Alfons J. M. Stams include University of Groningen & University of Minho.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Sulphate-reducing bacteria are anaerobic microorganisms that use sulphate as a terminal electron acceptor in, for example, the degradation of organic compounds, and are ubiquitous in anoxic habitats.
Abstract: Sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB) are anaerobic microorganisms that use sulphate as a terminal electron acceptor in, for example, the degradation of organic compounds. They are ubiquitous in anoxic habitats, where they have an important role in both the sulphur and carbon cycles. SRB can cause a serious problem for industries, such as the offshore oil industry, because of the production of sulphide, which is highly reactive, corrosive and toxic. However, these organisms can also be beneficial by removing sulphate and heavy metals from waste streams. Although SRB have been studied for more than a century, it is only with the recent emergence of new molecular biological and genomic techniques that we have begun to obtain detailed information on their way of life.

1,809 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The transfer of hydrogen and formate between bacteria and archaea that helps to sustain growth in syntrophic methanogenic communities is reviewed and the process of reverse electron transfer is described, which is a key requirement in obligately syntrophic interactions.
Abstract: Interspecies electron transfer is a key process in methanogenic and sulphate-reducing environments. Bacteria and archaea that live in syntrophic communities take advantage of the metabolic abilities of their syntrophic partner to overcome energy barriers and break down compounds that they cannot digest by themselves. Here, we review the transfer of hydrogen and formate between bacteria and archaea that helps to sustain growth in syntrophic methanogenic communities. We also describe the process of reverse electron transfer, which is a key requirement in obligately syntrophic interactions. Anaerobic methane oxidation coupled to sulphate reduction is also carried out by syntrophic communities of bacteria and archaea but, as we discuss, the exact mechanism of this syntrophic interaction is not yet understood.

1,052 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This mini-review of several fermentation processes is discussed, starting with the most advanced process of ethanol production, followed by methane production, an established process for waste water purification which is gaining more attention because of the inherent energy production.
Abstract: Because biomass is a widely available, renewable resource, its utilisation for the production of energy has great potential for reducing CO2 emissions and thereby preventing global warming. In this mini-review the `state of the art' of several fermentation processes is discussed, starting with the most advanced process of ethanol production. This is followed by methane production, an established process for waste water purification which is gaining more attention because of the inherent energy production. Subsequently ABE fermentation is discussed and finally the biological production of hydrogen. The last section proposes a new way to assess and compare the different processes by relating their merit to `work content' values and `lost work' instead of the combustion values of their products. It is argued that, especially when dealing with energy from biomass, the application of this methodology will provide a uniform valuation for different processes and products. The described fermentation processes enable the supply of pure energy carriers, either gaseous or liquid, from biomass, yet the introduction of these processes is hampered by two major problems. The first is related to technological shortcomings in the mobilisation of fermentable components from the biomass. The second, having a much greater impact, is linked with socio-economics: until full externality costs are attributed to fossil fuels, accounting for their role in pollution and global warming, the competitiveness of the processes described here will hardly stand a chance.

616 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Syntrophic relationships which depend on interspecies hydrogen or formate transfer were described for the degradation of e.g. fatty acids, amino acids and aromatic compounds in methanogenic environments.
Abstract: In methanogenic environments organic matter is degraded by associations of fermenting, acetogenic and methanogenic bacteria. Hydrogen and formate consumption, and to some extent also acetate consumption, by methanogens affects the metabolism of the other bacteria. Product formation of fermenting bacteria is shifted to more oxidized products, while acetogenic bacteria are only able to metabolize compounds when methanogens consume hydrogen and formate efficiently. These types of metabolic interaction between anaerobic bacteria is due to the fact that the oxidation of NADH and FADH2 coupled to proton or bicarbonate reduction in thermodynamically only feasible at low hydrogen and formate concentrations. Syntrophic relationships which depend on interspecies hydrogen or formate transfer were described for the degradation of e.g. fatty acids, amino acids and aromatic compounds.

567 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Syngas fermenting microorganisms possess advantageous characteristics for biofuel production and hold potential for future engineering efforts, although genetic tools for such engineering are currently unavailable.

491 citations


Cited by
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Abstract: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201

14,171 citations

01 Jun 2012
TL;DR: SPAdes as mentioned in this paper is a new assembler for both single-cell and standard (multicell) assembly, and demonstrate that it improves on the recently released E+V-SC assembler and on popular assemblers Velvet and SoapDeNovo (for multicell data).
Abstract: The lion's share of bacteria in various environments cannot be cloned in the laboratory and thus cannot be sequenced using existing technologies. A major goal of single-cell genomics is to complement gene-centric metagenomic data with whole-genome assemblies of uncultivated organisms. Assembly of single-cell data is challenging because of highly non-uniform read coverage as well as elevated levels of sequencing errors and chimeric reads. We describe SPAdes, a new assembler for both single-cell and standard (multicell) assembly, and demonstrate that it improves on the recently released E+V-SC assembler (specialized for single-cell data) and on popular assemblers Velvet and SoapDeNovo (for multicell data). SPAdes generates single-cell assemblies, providing information about genomes of uncultivatable bacteria that vastly exceeds what may be obtained via traditional metagenomics studies. SPAdes is available online ( http://bioinf.spbau.ru/spades ). It is distributed as open source software.

10,124 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
25 Mar 2005-Science
TL;DR: New studies are revealing how the gut microbiota has coevolved with us and how it manipulates and complements the authors' biology in ways that are mutually beneficial.
Abstract: The distal human intestine represents an anaerobic bioreactor programmed with an enormous population of bacteria, dominated by relatively few divisions that are highly diverse at the strain/subspecies level. This microbiota and its collective genomes (microbiome) provide us with genetic and metabolic attributes we have not been required to evolve on our own, including the ability to harvest otherwise inaccessible nutrients. New studies are revealing how the gut microbiota has coevolved with us and how it manipulates and complements our biology in ways that are mutually beneficial. We are also starting to understand how certain keystone members of the microbiota operate to maintain the stability and functional adaptability of this microbial organ.

4,526 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review provides a detailed summary of the research conducted on the inhibition of anaerobic processes and indicates that co-digestion with other waste, adaptation of microorganisms to inhibitory substances, and incorporation of methods to remove or counteract toxicants before an aerobic digestion can significantly improve the waste treatment efficiency.

4,123 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
02 Jun 2006-Science
TL;DR: Using metabolic function analyses of identified genes, the human genome is compared with the average content of previously sequenced microbial genomes and humans are superorganisms whose metabolism represents an amalgamation of microbial and human attributes.
Abstract: The human intestinal microbiota is composed of 10(13) to 10(14) microorganisms whose collective genome ("microbiome") contains at least 100 times as many genes as our own genome. We analyzed approximately 78 million base pairs of unique DNA sequence and 2062 polymerase chain reaction-amplified 16S ribosomal DNA sequences obtained from the fecal DNAs of two healthy adults. Using metabolic function analyses of identified genes, we compared our human genome with the average content of previously sequenced microbial genomes. Our microbiome has significantly enriched metabolism of glycans, amino acids, and xenobiotics; methanogenesis; and 2-methyl-d-erythritol 4-phosphate pathway-mediated biosynthesis of vitamins and isoprenoids. Thus, humans are superorganisms whose metabolism represents an amalgamation of microbial and human attributes.

4,111 citations