Inside Cover: Minor Actinides Can Replace Essential Lanthanides in Bacterial Life (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 31/2023)

Exploring new fields: Lanthanide-using bacteria that turn over methane or methanol in their metabolism can replace essential lanthanides by certain actinides. In their Research Article (e202303669), Lena J. Daumann et al. show that an extremophile isolated from a volcanic mud-pot as well as a methylotrophic laboratory strain can use americium and curium. In vivo growth experiments as well as in vitro studies with the key metabolic enzyme methanol dehydrogenase support that these actinides can sustain the one-carbon metabolism of these bacteria.