Abstract:
Thermophilic methanoarchaea are grouped into five orders. They range from moderately thermophiles to hyperthermophiles, Methanoplanus kandleri being the most thermophilic methanogen known so far (maximum temperature for growth is 110°C). They inhabit a wide range of hot terrestrial and subterrestrial ecosystems, including thermal springs, oil reservoirs, and deep sea hydrothermal vents, but also digestors operating at high temperatures. Their contribution to complete organic matter oxidation through hydrogen and acetate metabolism has been clearly established in digestors, whereas hydrogen, produced from biotic and abiotic reactions, appears as the primary energy source within the other hot ecosystems. Despite a limited metabolic diversity, thermophilic methanoarchaea are of ecological significance, in particular, in the geomicrobiology of the deep hot biosphere.
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Many thanks to Pierre Roger for revising the manuscript.
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Ollivier*, B., Cayol, JL. (2010). Thermophilic Methanoarchaea Inhabiting Hot Ecosystems. In: Timmis, K.N. (eds) Handbook of Hydrocarbon and Lipid Microbiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-77587-4_54
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-77587-4_54
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