RESEARCH ARTICLE a Hydrogen regulation

Full list of author information is available at the end of the articleBackground Archaea are prokaryotes, they resemble Bacteria in genome size, genome organization and the absence of a nuclear membrane, but their genetic information storage and expression components are generally more closely related to their eukaryotic than bacterial coun-terparts [1]. Historically, difficulties in manipulating Archaea genetically limited archaeal research but, with the discovery that Thermococcus kodakarensis is naturally competent for DNA uptake and transformation [2], genetic tools have been developed and T. kodakarensis established as a readily tractable experimental model for archaeal and hyperthermophile research [3]. As a fermen-tative heterotroph that grows rapidly, optimally at 85°C * Correspondence