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Free-Living Protozoa with Endosymbiotic Methanogens

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(Endo)symbiotic Methanogenic Archaea

Part of the book series: Microbiology Monographs ((MICROMONO,volume 19))

Abstract

Methanogenic bacteria occur in many, but not all free-living obligate anaerobic protozoa. This sort of symbiosis is especially common among anaerobic ciliates, but is also found in a few species of amoebae and flagellates. Protozoa harbouring methanogens have a clostridium-type fermentative metabolism with H2 as metabolite, the hydrogen generation taking place in special organelles, so called hydrogenosomes. The relation between the host cells and their endosymbiotic methanogens is syntrophic hydrogen transfer. By removing the generated H2, the methanogens stimulate host H2-production, thus increasing the energetic yield of the energy metabolism. This sort of symbiosis has evolved independently in many cases and involves representatives of several major groups of methanogenic bacteria. Symbiotic methanogenesis of free-living anaerobic protozoa plays only a modest quantitative role in terms of CH4-production in most habitats.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Marine Biological Laboratory, University of Copenhagen, Strandpromenaden 5, 3000, Helsingør, Denmark

    Tom Fenchel

  2. The River Laboratory, Queen Mary University of London, Wareham, Dorset, BH20 6BB, UK

    Bland J. Finlay

Authors
  1. Tom Fenchel
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  2. Bland J. Finlay
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Correspondence to Tom Fenchel .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Science, University of Nijmegen, POB 9010, Nijmegen, 6500 GL, Netherlands

    Johannes H.P. Hackstein

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Fenchel, T., Finlay, B.J. (2010). Free-Living Protozoa with Endosymbiotic Methanogens. In: Hackstein, J. (eds) (Endo)symbiotic Methanogenic Archaea. Microbiology Monographs, vol 19. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-13615-3_1

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