Discussion In this study, a novel RCC species was found growing in the anaerobic fungal subcultures. Many studies have shown that a large group of RCC inhabited the rumen of a variety of ruminant species on various diets [1, 2, 4–11]. Thus, the RCC species grown in the anaerobic fungal cultures in the selleck chemical present study just represented a small group of the

total RCC. It has been proposed that the RCC in the rumen and its relatives in other LY2090314 datasheet environments could constitute the seventh order of the methanogens (Methanoplasmatales) [17]. Methanogens within this new methanogenic order distantly related to the Thermoplasmatales, have been shown to be present in various environments, including marine habitats, soil, and also the intestinal tracts of termites and mammals, suggesting their ubiquitous in various environments. The whole order was proposed to form three big clusters, Ca. M. alvus Androgen Receptor Antagonist Cluster, M. luminyensis Cluster and Lake Pavin Cluster [15]. The novel RCC species in the present study was grouped in the Ca. M. alvus Cluster. The present study reported the first account for RCC species grown in the fungal cultures from the goat rumen. Nevertheless this single species may not represent the whole RCC community in the rumen. Therefore, further research is needed to uncover this community and its features in the rumen. Interestingly, this novel species could survive

in the long-term transferred fungal subcultures (even in the 62nd subcultures). Thus, there must be an underlying mechanism supporting the growth of this novel RCC species in the fungal subcultures. A similar phenomenon for protozoa was

reported by Irbis and Ushida [20]. When testing a single protozoa cell for the 16S rRNA gene sequences Bupivacaine of archaea, they found that the cultured rumen protozoa Isotricha intestinalis and Ophryoscolex purkynjei from goats carried Thermoplasma sp. related sequences (GenBank: AB189868, 99% similarity to LGM-AF04). Recent studies showed that methanogens belonging to this group [8, 14–17] could strictly use hydrogen to reduce methanol and methylamines to methane. It is well known that both anaerobic fungi and protozoa could produce hydrogen, which is one of the substrates for methanogens [19, 21]. This may make it possible for anaerobic fungi to provide RCC species with hydrogen. Methanol and methylamines could be derived from the microbial degradation of pectin, betaine, and choline from diets in the rumen [22]. Ametaj et al. [23] demonstrated that there were methanol and methylamines in the rumen fluid of lactating dairy cows fed graded amounts of barley grain. In this study, the medium for the co-culture of anaerobic fungi and methanogens contained rice straw and clarified rumen fluid. Anaerobic fungi could degrade the pectin of rice straw by pectinolytic enzymes [24, 25], accompanying the release of methanol.