The Methanosarcina acetivorans C2A genome is 5.75 Million bp long and contains approximately 4721 predicted genes. M. acetivorans is the largest known archaeal genome. Only Methanosarcina species possess all three known pathways for methanogenesis and are capable of utilizing no less than nine methanogenic substrates, including acetate. In contrast, all other orders of methanogens possess a single pathway for methanogenesis, and many utilize no more than two substrates.

The sequence was released April 2002 by the Broad Institute, and was described in Genome Res 12:532-42 (2002) Galagan JE, Nusbaum C, Roy A, Endrizzi MG, Macdonald P, et al.  "The genome of M. acetivorans reveals extensive metabolic and physiological diversity. "
Abstract: Methanogenesis, the biological production of methane, plays a pivotal role in the global carbon cycle and contributes significantly to global warming. The majority of methane in nature is derived from acetate. Here we report the complete genome sequence of an acetate-utilizing methanogen, Methanosarcina acetivorans C2A. Methanosarcineae are the most metabolically diverse methanogens, thrive in a broad range of environments, and are unique among the Archaea in forming complex multicellular structures. This diversity is reflected in the genome of M. acetivorans. At 5,751,492 base pairs it is by far the largest known archaeal genome. The 4524 open reading frames code for a strikingly wide and unanticipated variety of metabolic and cellular capabilities. The presence of novel methyltransferase... [Click above reference link for full abstract]

Sample position queries

A genome position can be specified by chromosomal coordinate range, COG ID, or keywords from the GenBank or TIGR description of a gene. The available chromosome/plasmid names are:

Browser Chrom/Plasmid NameLength (bp)GC Content (%)Gene CountNCBI RefSeq Accession
chr575149242.684721NC_003552

The following list shows examples of valid position queries for this genome: 

Request:Genome Browser Response:
chrDisplays the entire sequence "chr" in the browser window
chr:1-10000    Displays first ten thousand bases of the sequence "chr"
transporter    Lists all genes with "transporter" in the name or description
MA0010Display genome at position of gene MA0010


Credits

The Archaeal Genome Browsers at UCSC were developed by members of the Lowe Lab (Kevin Schneider, Katherine Pollard, Andy Pohl, Todd Lowe) and Robert Baertsch, with significant support from the UCSC Human Genome Browser group. The Archaeal Browsers are run by a slightly modified version of the UCSC Human Genome Browser system. All queries, bug reports, content corrections, suggested improvements, and new track data submissions should be sent to Todd Lowe (lowe @soe.ucsc.edu).

If you use the browser in your published research, please cite our publication in the Nucleic Acids Research Database Issue. Citations and positive feedback will help us obtain funding to continue development of this community resource.