''Methanocorpusculum'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of microbes within the family
Methanocorpusculaceae.
The species within ''Methanocorpusculum'' were first isolated from biodisgester wastewater and activated sludge from
anaerobic digestors. In nature, they live in
freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. The term excludes seawater and brackish water, but it does include non-salty mi ...
environments. Unlike most other methanogenic archaea, they do not require
high temperatures or
extreme salt concentrations to live and grow.
Nomenclature
The name ''Methanocorpusculum'' has Latin roots. It means ''bodies that produce
methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...
''.
Description and metabolism
The cells of these archaea are small, irregular, and
coccoid
Coccoid means shaped like or resembling a coccus, that is, spherical.The noun coccoid or coccoids may refer to:
* a level of organization, characterized by unicellular, non-flagellated, non-amoeboid organisms, with a definite shape, in general bu ...
in shape. They are
Gram-negative
Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that, unlike gram-positive bacteria, do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. Their defining characteristic is that their cell envelope consists ...
s y and not very motile. They reduce
carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...
to methane using
hydrogen
Hydrogen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol H and atomic number 1. It is the lightest and abundance of the chemical elements, most abundant chemical element in the universe, constituting about 75% of all baryon, normal matter ...
, but they can also use
formate
Formate (IUPAC name: methanoate) is the conjugate base of formic acid. Formate is an anion () or its derivatives such as ester of formic acid. The salts and esters are generally colorless.
Fundamentals
When dissolved in water, formic acid co ...
or secondary alcohols. They cannot use
acetate
An acetate is a salt formed by the combination of acetic acid with a base (e.g. alkaline, earthy, metallic, nonmetallic, or radical base). "Acetate" also describes the conjugate base or ion (specifically, the negatively charged ion called ...
or
methylamine
Methylamine, also known as methanamine, is an organic compound with a formula of . This colorless gas is a derivative of ammonia, but with one hydrogen atom being replaced by a methyl group. It is the simplest primary amine.
Methylamine is sold ...
s. They grow fastest at temperatures of 30–40 °C.
Phylogeny
The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the
List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature
List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) is an online database that maintains information on the naming and taxonomy of prokaryotes, following the taxonomy requirements and rulings of the International Code of Nomenclatu ...
(LPSN)
and
National Center for Biotechnology Information
The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) is part of the National Library of Medicine (NLM), a branch of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It is approved and funded by the government of the United States. The NCBI is lo ...
(NCBI).
See also
*
List of Archaea genera
This article lists the genera of the Archaea. The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). However, in the List provided bel ...
References
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
Archaea genera
Euryarchaeota
{{Euryarchaeota-stub