TY - JOUR A1 - Beckmann, S. A1 - Krüger, M. A1 - Engelen, B. A1 - Gorbushina, Anna A1 - Cypionka, H. T1 - Role of bacteria, archaea and fungi involved in methane realease in abandoned coal mines JF - Geomicrobiology journal N2 - Worldwide, abandoned coal mines release substantial amounts of methane, which is largely of biogenic origin. The aim of this study was to understand the microbial processes involved in mine-gas formation. Therefore, coal and timber samples and anaerobic enrichments from two abandoned coal mines in Germany were subjected to DGGE analyses and quantitative PCR. The primers used were specific for Bacteria, Archaea, Fungi, and the key functional genes for sulfate reduction (dsrA) and methanogenesis (mcrA). A broad spectrum of facultative anaerobic bacteria and acetogens belonging to all five groups (α-ε) of the Proteobacteria, as well as the Bacteroidetes, Tenericutes, Actinobacteria, Chlorobi and Chloroflexi were detected. Archaea were represented by acetoclastic Methanosarcinales and Crenarchaeota with an unknown metabolism. Fungi formed thick biofilms particularly on timber, and were identified as typical wood degraders belonging to the Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes. The community analysis as well as the environmental conditions and the metabolites detected in a previous study are consistent with the following scenario of methane release: Weathering of coal and timber is initiated by wood-degrading Fungi and Bacteria under a suboxic atmosphere. In the lower, oxygen-depleted layers Fungi and Bacteria perform incomplete oxidation and release reduced substrates which can be channeled into methanogenesis. Acetate appeared to be the main precursor of the biogenic methane in the investigated coal mines. KW - Mine gas KW - Community analysis or microbial diversity KW - Quantitative PCR KW - DGGE KW - Acetoclastic methanogenesis KW - Fermentative bacteria KW - Methanosarcinales PY - 2011 DO - https://doi.org/10.1080/01490451.2010.503258 SN - 0149-0451 VL - 28 IS - 4 SP - 347 EP - 358 PB - Crane, Russak & Co. CY - New York, NY, USA AN - OPUS4-23841 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -