Nitrogen fixed for termites: spirochete bacteria

Spirochete bacteria found in the hindgut of termites fix atmospheric nitrogen for termite nutrition via nitrogenase enzymes.

Biomimicry Taxonomy

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Biomimetic Application Ideas

Nitrogen fixation systems that borrow biochemical pathway strategy of spirochetes.

[Collapse all sections] Summary

"Our results reveal a new dimension to the metabolic diversity within the Spirochaetes and now extend to 6 (of 18) the number of phyla within the domain Bacteria that contain N2-fixing representatives (11, 25). They also reveal a role for spirochetes in termite nitrogen nutrition. Two observations suggest that N2 fixation by spirochetes is important to termite nitrogen economy. First, spirochetes are unusually abundant in termite guts, accounting for as much as 50% of all prokaryotes (26). Second, many of the spirochete NifHs characterized in this study were identical or nearly identical to NifH clones obtained from a variety of termites, including NiMs known to be expressed in termite guts (Fig. 2), suggesting a spirochete origin for the latter…Our results also reveal a heretofore unrecognized role for free-living spirochetes in global N cycling." (Lilburn et al. 2001:2497)

About the inspiring organism

Spirochaeta
Spirochaeta
[Spirochete bacteria]

Organism/taxonomy data provided by:
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2008 Annual Checklist

Bioinspired products and application ideas

Application Ideas: Nitrogen fixation systems that borrow biochemical pathway strategy of spirochetes.

Industrial Sector(s) interested in this strategy: Environmental engineering, energy, agriculture, forestry

References

Lilburn, T.G.; Kim, K.S.; Ostrom, N.E.; Byzek, K.R.; Leadbetter, J.R.; Breznak, J.A. 2001. Nitrogen fixation by symbiotic and free-living spirochetes. Science. (292): 2495–2498.

Nitrogen fixed for termites: spirochete bacteria

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