MESSAI.iO

Electrotroph · Acetogen · Homoacetogen

Sporomusa ovata

Bacillota · Negativicutes · Sporomusaceae

ElectroactiveEET inwardType strainBSL-1Comprehensive record
  • MES model organism
  • Acetogen
  • Wood ljungdahl
  • Biocathode
  • Tier 1
Inward
Electron transfer
electroactive
30°C
Optimal temperature
grows 20–37 °C
6.8
Optimal pH
grows pH 6–7.5
4g/L
Best acetate titer
range 1–11

01 · Identity

Identity

Where this organism sits in the tree of life, how to obtain it, and what a cell looks like.

Lineage

  1. domainBacteria
  2. ›phylumBacillota
  3. ›classNegativicutes
  4. ›orderVeillonellales
  5. ›familySporomusaceae
  6. ›genusSporomusa
  7. ›speciesSporomusa ovata

Culture collections & accessions

DSMZ
DSM 2662
NCBI taxon
2378
Status
Type strain

Isolation

From Silage from grass, Germany by Möller B, et al. (1984).

Möller B, et al. (1984). Sporomusa, a new genus of gram-negative anaerobic bacteria.

Genome

4.95Mb
Genome size
42.7%
GC content
Complete
Assembly level

Cell morphology

Rod, Gram-negative (diderm)

length 3 (1.5–5) µm

  • Motile: yes
  • Spore-forming: yes

02 · Electron transfer

Electron transfer

How electrons cross the cell envelope — the property that makes a microbe useful in an electrochemical system.

ElectroactiveEET inward

No extracellular electron-transfer route is curated for this organism yet.

Mechanisms

Direct transfer — detail

Notes
Cathode-uptake cytochromes of S. ovata remain incompletely characterized as of 2024. The pathway is biochemically demonstrated but the molecular components have not been mapped to the depth Geobacter/Shewanella have been.
Completeness
Partial

Other

Cathode electron uptake mechanism
Direct EET demonstrated

03 · Growth envelope

Growth envelope

The conditions this organism tolerates and what it eats and breathes — the operating window for a reactor.

MesophileObligate anaerobeMixotroph
Temperature30 (20–37) °C
0100 °C
pH6.8 (6–7.5)
014

Energy metabolism

Electron donors

  • H2
  • Cathode
  • Methanol

Electron acceptors

  • CO2

Carbon sources

  • CO2
  • H2
  • Methanol
  • Fructose
  • Betaine
  • Lactate
  • Ethanol
  • Fermentative: yes

Metabolism — detail

ATP synthase type
Proton dependent
Carbon fixation pathway
Wood ljungdahl
Energy conservation mechanism
Rnf complex

04 · Performance

Performance

Reported electrochemical output, the role it plays in a reactor, and what it produces.

Role in a reactor

Cathode chamberCathode: primary product producer

Products (2)

ProductMax titer (g/L)Max rateCoulombic efficiency
acetate4 (1–11)0.3 (0.1–0.7) g/L/d
80 (65–90) %
0100 %
2-oxobutyrate0.1——

Substrate → product (4)

  • CO2 + electrons (cathode)yields
    • Acetate
    • 2-oxobutyrate

    biocathode at -400 mV vs SHE · yield 86 % Coulombic efficiency · First organism demonstrated to perform microbial electrosynthesis (Nevin et al. 2010).

  • CO2 + electrons (cathode)yields
    • Acetate
    • 2-oxobutyrate

    biocathode at -400 mV vs SHE · yield 86 % Coulombic efficiency · First organism demonstrated to perform microbial electrosynthesis (Nevin et al. 2010).

  • H2 + CO2yields
    • Acetate

    anaerobic, autotrophic

  • H2 + CO2yields
    • Acetate

    anaerobic, autotrophic

05 · Ecology & biofilm

Ecology & biofilm

How it lives on an electrode, who it partners with, and where it is found in nature.

Biofilm

  • Forms biofilm: yes

Preferred electrode materials

  • graphite stick
  • carbon cloth
  • modified carbon (CNT, polymer)

Ecosystems

  • Freshwater
  • Engineered MES
  • Anaerobic digester

Isolation sources

  • river mud, cattle waste

06 · Applications, engineering & safety

Applications, engineering & safety

Where it has been put to work, how tractable it is to engineer, and what handling it requires.

Applications (2)

  • Microbial electrosynthesis acetate · Bench scale
    TRL 4/9
  • Carbon capture
    TRL 3/9

Engineering

Engineered strains publishedIndustrial relevance 5/5

Reactor compatibility

  • MES cathode
  • MES three chamber

Operation

Stable operation500 (100–1500) h
02000 h
Load change sensitivity
Medium
Recommended inoculation
Pre-grown on H2/CO2 then transferred to cathode under poised potential (-0.4 V vs SHE).

Commercial

NameCountryApplication
ElectrochaeaDK/DEbiomethanation (uses related methanogens)

Multiple MES electrosynthesis patents reference Sporomusa as a biocatalyst.

Biosafety

BSL-1
  • Pathogen: no

Modeling assets

Linked GEM: iSov-default

07 · Sources & data quality

Sources & data quality

Every value above traces to a citation. This is how complete and how confident the record is.

Record quality

ComprehensiveHigh confidenceCurated: manual

Literature reviewed 2026-04-26 · schema v1.2.0 · updated 2026-04-28 · imported 2026-04-28

References (4)

  1. Nevin KP, et al. (2010). Microbial electrosynthesis: feeding microbes electricity to convert CO2 and water to multicarbon extracellular organic compounds. mBio 1:e00103-10.
  2. Nevin KP, et al. (2010). Microbial electrosynthesis: feeding microbes electricity to convert CO2 and water to multicarbon extracellular organic compounds. mBio 1:e00103-10.
  3. Nevin KP, et al. (2011). Electrosynthesis of organic compounds from CO2 by a diversity of acetogenic microorganisms. Appl Environ Microbiol 77:2882-2886.doi:10.1128/AEM.02642-10
  4. Nevin KP, et al. (2011). Electrosynthesis of organic compounds from CO2 by a diversity of acetogenic microorganisms. Appl Environ Microbiol 77:2882-2886.doi:10.1128/AEM.02642-10

Version history

  1. 2026-04-27 · v1.2.0 · messai_curation
    • Added genome_metadata, type strain flag, isolation provenance.
    • Added energy_conservation_mechanism: rnf_complex.
    • Added operational_characteristics.
    • Flagged direct_transfer.completeness: partial (cathode uptake cytochromes uncharacterized).