Specificity and biological distribution of coenzyme M (2-mercaptoethanesulfonic acid)

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Abstract
The specificity of the growth requirement of Methanobacterium ruminantium strain M1 for a new coenzyme, 2-mercaptoethanesulfonic acid (HS-CoM), was examined. A variety of derivatives, analogs and potential biosynthetic precursors of CoM were tested; only a restricted range of thioether, thioester and thiocarbonate derivatives of the cofactor replaced the HS-CoM requirement. Bromoethanesulfonic acid (BrCH2CH2SO3-), a halogenated analog of HS-CoM, potently inhibited the growth response. No coenzyme was detectable in a wide range of nonmethanogenic eukaryotic tissues and prokaryotic organisms. All methanogens available in pure culture exhibited high levels of CoM which ranged from 0.3-16 nmol/mg of dry wt.