Methanogens are microorganisms that produce methane in low oxygen conditions, found in wetlands and animal guts. Some are extremophiles, while others thrive in moderate temperatures. They use carbon sources and hydrogen for metabolism, removing excess carbon and hydrogen from anaerobic environments. Methanogens help remove carbon dioxide from the environment, but also produce methane, which can be used as a biofuel.
Methanogens are a type of microorganism that produces methane as a byproduct of metabolism under conditions of very low oxygen. They are often found in marshes, marshes and other wetlands, where the methane they produce is known as “swamp gas.” Methanogens also exist in the guts of some animals, including cows and humans, where they contribute to the methane content of flatulence. Although once classified as Archaebacteria, methanogens are now classified as Archaea, distinct from bacteria.
Some types of methanogens, including those of the genus Methanopyrus, are extremophiles, organisms that thrive in conditions in which most living things could not survive, such as hot springs, hydrothermal vents, hot desert soils, and deep subterranean environments. Others, such as those in the Methanocaldococcus genus, are mesophilic, meaning they thrive best in moderate temperatures. Methanobrevibacter smithii is the major methanogen in the human gut, where it helps digest polysaccharides or complex sugars.
Methanogens are rod-shaped or spherical. However, they do not form a monophyletic group, which means that all methanogens do not consist of a single ancestor and all of its descendants. There are over 50 species, all belonging to the Archaea domain. Methanogens do not require oxygen and, in some cases, cannot even survive in oxygen, although they may be able to tolerate its presence for extended periods.
Methanogens are a very diverse group. They use a carbon source, such as carbon dioxide or acetate, to drive their metabolism, called methanogenesis, along with hydrogen as a reducing agent. Therefore, they have the ecological advantage of removing excess hydrogen and carbon from anaerobic environments. A methanogen that metabolizes carbon dioxide is classified as hydrogenotrophic, while those that metabolize acetate are called acetotrophic or acetychoclastic.
Methanogens perform an important ecological function by helping to remove carbon dioxide from the environment. They do this at a substantial cost, however, as the methanogenesis process also produces methane, which has a global warming potential 21 times that of carbon dioxide. This effect can fortunately be offset by the use of methane as a biofuel.
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