Institute of Microbiology
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Datun Rd, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China
Tel / Fax: 86-10-62551577
E-mail: mayanhe@im.ac.cn
   
Research Area
Extremophiles are unique organisms that habitat in harsh environments including the extreme temperature, pH, pressure and salinity. Exploring microbial diversity under extreme environmental conditions and understanding adaptation mechanisms of extremophiles to survive in such extreme conditions will not only lead to much new knowledge of biology, but also contribute to the future development of biotechnology.
Our research interest is focused on discovering, understanding and application of extremophiles. Three aspects are involved: ecology and taxonomy of extremophiles, physiological mechanisms of extremophiles’ adaptation to extreme environments, and exploration of novel functionality of extremophiles for application.

Current Research
(1) Diversity and Systematics of Extremophiles developing novel procedures including high-throughput methods for accessing the diversity of extremophile resources in soda lakes, hot springs, petroleum reservoirs and subsurface of saline lake, isolating and identifying novel extremophiles from these extreme environments, screening thermophiles and alkaliphiles for biomass utilization, biochemicals/biofuels production.and MEOR. (2) Discovering and Engineering of Extreme Hydrolases Screening novel genes of extreme hydrolases involved in renewable biomass processing through coupling metagenomic cloning, gene-specific PCR, shotgun cloning, genomics and bioinformatics techniques with high-throughput screening methods; improving the performances of specific hydrolases for practical application through random mutagenesis, rational design and directed evolution techniques; developing different host strains to over-express extremozymes. (3) Structure and Function of Extremozymes Alkaline/acidic mannanases and thermophilic amylase/glucosidase are selected as research models to investigate the relationship between protein sequence, structure and function. Specific amino acid residue functions will be related to pH/temperature stability and activity features of the enzymes; crystal structures of the recombinant mannanase/glucosidase and several site-specific mutants will be obtained and analyzed to understand the basis of the stability and activity under rigorous conditions. (4) Molecular Basis for the Alkaliphily of Alkaliphiles Developing Alkalimonas amylolyticus as a model system for investigation on alkaliphily of alkaliphiles, isolating pH resistance-related genes from genomic DNA libraries by complement screening assay, identifying membrane proteins in A. amylolytica responsible for adaptation to alkaline condition by the differential proteomics techniques, evaluating their potential for improving salt and alkaline resistance of agriculture crops. (5) Comparative and Functional Genomics of Extremophiles Sequencing the genomes of alkaliphilic A. amylolyticus; annotating genome sequences with biological functions in A. amylolyticus; developing microchip-based detection techniques to explore and define the important genes involved in utilization of complex carbohydrate substrates and pathways of carbohydrate catabolism and biochemicals production; developing differential proteomics techniques to identify the important proteins involved in carbohydrate transport and utilization; integrating data generated from genomics, proteomics, comparative and functional genomics to elucidate enzymes and pathways for carbohydrate catabolism and biochemicals synthesis and mechanisms for carbohydrate transport in extremophiles; developing novel enzymes and processes for industrial application.

Current Projects

• National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program)：
1. Cell Factories for Biorefinery (Molecular basis for biomass bioconversion and carbohydrate metabolism)
2. Basic research on critical problems in biocatalysis and biotransformation (Diversity of biocatalysts)
3. Basic research on extremophiles (Molecular Basis for the adaptation of extremophiles to extreme condition)

• National High Technology R & D Program of China (863 Program)：
1. Molecular modification and engineering application of industrial biocatalysts
2. Exploitation and application of extremophile resources in extreme environments of China

• Knowledge Innovation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences：
1. Molecular mechanism of the extremozymes and its application potential
2. Research on the key technology of microbial enhanced oil recovery

• International Cooperation Program:
1. 2+2 China-German Cooperation project: Hydrolases from Extremophiles for Applications in Laundry, Food Processing, and Biofuel Production.

Selected Publications

1. Jingqiang Wang, Caifeng Zhao, Bo Meng, Junhua Xie, Chuanqi Zhou, Xishu Chen, Kang Zhao, Jianmin Shao, Yanfen Xue, Ningzhi Xu, Yanhe Ma*, Siqi Liu*
   The proteomic alterations of Thermoanaerobacter tengcongensis cultured at different temperatures Proteomics, 2007;7(9):1409-19 
2. Yi Wei, Jun Liu, Yanhe Ma and Terry A. Krulwich*
   Three putative cation/proton antiporters from the soda lake alkaliphile Alkalimonas amylolytica N10 complement an alkali-sensitive Escherichia coli mutant Microbiology, (2007), 153: 2168-2179
3. Sanqing Yuan, Peigen Ren, Jun Liu, Yanfen Xue*, Yanhe Ma, Peijin Zhou
   Lentibacillus halodurans sp. nov., a moderately halophilic bacterium isolated from a salt lake in Xin-Jiang, China Int J Syst Evol Microbiol , 2007, 57(Pt 3):485-8 
4. M. C. Márquez, I. J. Carrasco, Y. Xue, Y. Ma, D. A. Cowan, B. E. Jones, W. D. Grant, and A. Ventosa*
   Aquisalimonas asiatica gen. nov., sp. nov., a moderately halophilic bacterium isolated from an alkaline, saline lake in Inner Mongolia, China Int J Syst Evol Microbiol , 2007; 57: 1137 – 1142
5. Nan Wang, Yunhua Zhang, Quanhui Wang, Jun Liu, Honglei Wang, Yanfen Xue and Yanhe Ma*
   Gene cloning and characterization of a novel α-amylase from alkaliphilic Alkalimonas amylolytica Biotechnology Journal, (2006), 1:1258–1265
6. Grant S, Grant WD, Cowan DA, Jones BE, Ma Y, Ventosa A, Heaphy S.
   Identification of eukaryotic open reading frames in metagenomic cDNA libraries made from environmental samples Appl Environ Microbiol, 2006，Jan; 72(1): 135-43.
7. Yanfen Xue, Xinqi Zhang, Cheng Zhou, Don A. Cowan , Shaun Heaphy, William   D. Grant, Brian E. Jones, Antonio Ventosa , and Yanhe Ma*，
   Caldalkalibacillus thermarum gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel alkalithermophilic bacterium from a hot spring in China Int J Syst Evol Microbiol , 2006，56: 1217-1221
8. A. M. Castillo, M. C. Gutiérrez, M. Kamekura, Y. Xue, Y. Ma, D. A. Cowan, B. E. Jones, W. D. Grant and A. Ventosa，
   Halostagnicola larsenii gen. nov., sp. nov., an extremely halophilic archaeon from a saline lake in Inner Mongolia, China Int J Systc Evol Microbiol 2006，56: 1519 - 1524
9. A. M. Castillo, M. C. Gutierrez, M. Kamekura, Y. Ma, D. A. Cowan, B. E. Jones, W. D. Grant and A. Ventosa
   Halovivax asiaticus gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel extremely halophilic archaeon isolated from Inner Mongolia, China Int J Systc Evol Microbiol y, 2006, 56: 765-770
10. Jun Liu, Yanfen Xue, Quanhui Wang, Yi Wei, Talia H. Swartz, David B. Hicks，Masahiro Ito, Yanhe Ma*, Terry A.Krulwich
    The Activity Profile of the NhaD-Type Na+(Li+)/H+ Antiporter from the Soda Lake Haloalkaliphile Alkalimonas amylolytica Is Adaptive for the Extreme Environment Journal of Bacteriology, 2005 Vol. 187: 7589-7595
11. Yanfen Xue, Huapeng Fan, A. Ventosa, D. A. Cowan, B. E. Jones, W. D. Grant, Yanhe Ma *.     
    Halalkalicoccus tibetensis gen. nov., sp. nov. a novel genus of haloalkaliphilic archaeon. Int J Systc Evol Microbiol, 2005 55:2501-5.
12. Yanhe Ma, Yanfen Xue, Yuetan Dou, Zhenghong Xu, Wenyi Tao and Peijin Zhou      
    Characterization and gene cloning of a novel β-mannanase from alkaliphilic Bacillus sp. N16-5 Extremophiles, 2004 8:447-454
13. Yanhe Ma*, Weizhou Zhang, Yanfen Xue, Peijin Zhou, Antonio Ventosa, William D. Grant     
    Bacterial diversity of the Inner Mongolian Baer Soda Lake as revealed by 16S rRNA gene sequence analyses       Extremophiles, 2004 8:45-51
14. Yanhe Ma, Yanfen Xue, Willam D. Grant, Nadine C. Collins, Andrew W. Duckworth, Robert P.van Steenbergen, Vrian E. Jones
    Alkalimonas amylolyticagen. nov., sp. nov.,and Alkalimonas delamerensisgen. nov., sp. nov., novel alkaliphilic bacteria from soda lakes in China and East Africa       Extremophiles, 2004 8:193-200
15. Jingqiang Wang, Yanfen Xue, Xiaolei Li, Hao Wang, Wei Li, Caifeng Zhao, Xiaojie Cheng, Yanhe Ma,Peijin Zhou, Jianming Yin, Aruni Bhatnagar, Rong Wang, Siqi Liu      
    An analysis of the protemomic profile for Thermoanaerobacter tengcongensis under optimal culture conditions       Proteomics, 2004 4:136-150
16. Huapeng Fan, Yanfen Xue, Yanhe Ma*, Antonio Ventosa and William D. Grant     
    Halorubrum tibetense sp.nov., a novel haloalkaliphilic archaeon from Lake Zabuye in Tibet,China Int J Systc Evol Microbiol, 2004 54 :1213-1216

Laboratory Staff
Yanfen Xue, Associate Professor, xueyf@sun.im.ac.cn
Yan Zeng, Assistant Professor, zengyan@im.ac.cn

Jun Shi, MSc
Xiaohong Qin, MSc
Fenghui Sun, MSc
Yan Zhang, MSc

Postdoctoral Fellows
Jiansong Ju  2006-2007

Students