MESSAI.iO

Syntrophic H₂ producer · Syntrophic formate producer · Secondary fermenter

Syntrophomonas wolfei

Bacillota · Clostridia · Syntrophomonadaceae

BSL-1Partial record
  • Syntroph
  • Fatty acid oxidizer
  • Non electroactive
  • Tier 2
None
Electron transfer
not electroactive
35°C
Optimal temperature
grows 25–40 °C
7.2
Optimal pH
grows pH 6.5–8

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. ›classClostridia
  4. ›orderEubacteriales
  5. ›familySyntrophomonadaceae
  6. ›genusSyntrophomonas
  7. ›speciesSyntrophomonas wolfei

Culture collections & accessions

DSMZ
DSM 2245
NCBI taxon
863

Cell morphology

Rod, Gram-negative (diderm)

  • Motile: yes
  • Spore-forming: yes

02 · Growth envelope

Growth envelope

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

MesophileObligate anaerobeChemoorganoheterotroph
Temperature35 (25–40) °C
0100 °C
pH7.2 (6.5–8)
014
Doubling time84 (48–168) h
0250 h

Energy metabolism

Electron donors

  • Butyrate
  • C4-C8 SCFAs

Electron acceptors

  • protons (when partner consumes H2)

Carbon sources

  • Butyrate
  • Valerate
  • Caproate
  • other short-chain fatty acids
  • Fermentative: yes

Metabolism — detail

ATP synthase type
Proton dependent

03 · Performance

Performance

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

Role in a reactor

Anode chamberAnode: planktonic substrate provider

Substrate → product (2)

  • butyrateyields
    • Acetate
    • H2

    syntrophic, requires H2-consuming partner · Cannot grow alone; thermodynamically requires low H2 partial pressure (<10 Pa).

  • butyrateyields
    • Acetate
    • H2

    syntrophic, requires H2-consuming partner · Cannot grow alone; thermodynamically requires low H2 partial pressure (<10 Pa).

04 · Ecology & biofilm

Ecology & biofilm

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

Syntrophic partners
RelationshipTransfer carrierPartner scientific namePartner IDEvidence level
Classical butyrate-oxidizing syntrophic pair.H2Methanospirillum hungatei——
Alternative syntrophic partner.FormateMethanobacterium formicicum——
Hypothesized DIET partnership in MFCsDIETGeobacter sulfurreducensGeobacter sulfurreducens pcaMetagenomic inferred

Ecosystems

  • Anaerobic digester
  • Wastewater
  • Freshwater

Isolation sources

  • anaerobic digester sludge

05 · 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 (1)

  • Wastewater treatment · Commercial

    Critical for SCFA degradation in anaerobic digesters.

    TRL 9/9

Biosafety

BSL-1
  • Pathogen: no

06 · 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

PartialMedium confidenceCurated: manual

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

References (2)

  1. McInerney MJ, et al. (1981). Syntrophomonas wolfei gen. nov. sp. nov., an anaerobic, syntrophic, fatty acid-oxidizing bacterium. Appl Environ Microbiol 41:1029-1039.
  2. McInerney MJ, et al. (1981). Syntrophomonas wolfei gen. nov. sp. nov., an anaerobic, syntrophic, fatty acid-oxidizing bacterium. Appl Environ Microbiol 41:1029-1039.