Clathrate hydrates are nonstoichiometric crystalline inclusion compounds. Water acts as a “host lattice” and traps small guest molecules in stable cavities. One example, methane hydrates, are especially prevalent in situ at the seafloor. Although microorganism-produced proteins and polypeptides, including marine methylotroph porin proteins, can accelerate methane hydrate formation under conditions simulating their natural occurrence at the seafloor, the role that particular peptide sequences play in biocatalytic hydrate kinetics enhancement is unclear, especially the underlying molecular-level mechanisms. Here, we reveal the peptide-focused regulation of microorganisms’ role in managing marine hydrates via an approximation mechanism of enzymatic catalysis accelerating hydrate formation. Aside from control of hydrate kinetics per se, we speculate that this peptide-centric mechanistic understanding could lead to a re-evaluation of the extent and geological importance of bioregulation of methane turnover in the biosphere.

中文翻译：

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催化和控制天然气水合物稳定的工程肽：向自然学习。

笼形水合物是非化学计量的晶体夹杂物。水充当“主体晶格”，并将小的客体分子捕获在稳定的空腔中。甲烷水合物就是一个例子，它在现场特别普遍在海底。尽管微生物产生的蛋白质和多肽（包括海洋甲基营养型孔蛋白）可以在模拟其在海底自然发生的条件下促进甲烷水合物的形成，但尚不清楚特定肽序列在生物催化水合物动力学增强中所起的作用，尤其是潜在的分子水平机制。在这里，我们揭示了通过酶催化加速水合物形成的近似机制，微生物在管理海洋水合物中的作用以肽为中心的调控。除了控制水合物动力学本身之外，我们推测这种以肽为中心的机理理解可能会导致对生物圈中甲烷转化的生物调节的程度和地质重要性进行重新评估。