Partial Oxidative Conversion of Methane to Methanol Through Selective Inhibition of Methanol Dehydrogenase in Methanotrophic Consortium from Landfill Cover Soil

Using a methanotrophic consortium (that includes Methylosinus sporium NCIMB 11126, Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, and Methylococcus capsulatus Bath) isolated from a landfill site, the potential for partial oxidation of methane into methanol through selective inhibition of methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) over soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) with some selected MDH inhibitors at varied concentration range, was evaluated in batch serum bottle and bioreactor experiments. Our result suggests that MDH activity could effectively be inhibited either at 40 mM of phosphate, 100 mM of NaCl, 40 mM of NH 4 Cl or 50 μM of EDTA with conversion ratios (moles of CH 3 OH produced per mole CH 4 consumed) of 58, 80, 80, and 43 %, respectively. The difference between extent of inhibition in MDH activity and sMMO activity was significantly correlated ( n = 6, p