Genomic Potential of Bioaugmentation with Microbial N2O Reductase for Greenhouse Gas Mitigation

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is a potent greenhouse gas that significantly contributes to climate change and stratospheric ozone depletion. This study explores the genomic potential of bioaugmentation using microorganisms possessing nitrous oxide reductase (N₂O reductase) to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. We retrieved and analyzed 78 bacterial and archaeal N₂O reductase protein sequences from 12 different phyla. Our phylogenetic tree and pairwise heatmap analyses identified several promising microorganisms, including previously studied strains such as Pseudomonas stutzeri DCP-Ps1, Pseudomonas stutzeri PCN-1, and Anaeromyxobacter dehalogenans 2CP-C, and newly identified groups such as Euryarchaeota and Chloroflexota based on high growth kinetics and efficient N₂O reduction rates. Pathogenicity screening confirmed their safety for bioaugmentation applications. The study emphasizes the importance of leveraging microbial functions to combat climate change and calls for future research to explore the practical applications of bioaugmentation using these newly identified microorganisms.