title: Absence of detectable arsenate in DNA from arsenate-grown GFAJ-1 cells.
abstract: A strain of Halomonas bacteria, GFAJ-1, has been claimed to be able to use arsenate as a nutrient when phosphate is limiting and to specifically incorporate arsenic into its DNA in place of phosphorus. However, we have found that arsenate does not contribute to growth of GFAJ-1 when phosphate is limiting and that DNA purified from cells grown with limiting phosphate and abundant arsenate does not exhibit the spontaneous hydrolysis expected of arsenate ester bonds. Furthermore, mass spectrometry showed that this DNA contains only trace amounts of free arsenate and no detectable covalently bound arsenate.
authors: Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.
authors: Marshall Louis
authors: ML
authors: Reaves
authors: Sunita
authors: S
authors: Sinha
authors: Joshua D
authors: JD
authors: Rabinowitz
authors: Leonid
authors: L
authors: Kruglyak
authors: Rosemary J
authors: RJ
authors: Redfield
mesh_terms: D001149:Arsenates / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D001151:Arsenic / Q000378:metabolism; D002499:Centrifugation, Density Gradient; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D044129:Halomonadaceae / Q000737:chemistry / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D006868:Hydrolysis; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D009711:Nucleotides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D010710:Phosphates / Q000378:metabolism*; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D001149:Arsenates; D003470:Culture Media; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D009711:Nucleotides; D010710:Phosphates; D010758:Phosphorus; D001151:Arsenic; C025657:arsenic acid