chemolithotroph

Examples of chemolithotroph in the following topics:

• The Energetics of Chemolithotrophy

  • Chemolithotrophs use electron donors oxidized in the cell, and channel electrons into respiratory chains, producing ATP.
  • Known chemolithotrophs are exclusively microbes; no known macrofauna possesses the ability to utilize inorganic compounds as energy sources.
  • These molecules can be organic (chemoorganotrophs) or inorganic (chemolithotrophs).
  • Chemolithotrophic growth could be dramatically fast, such as Thiomicrospira crunogena with a doubling time around one hour.
  • In chemolithotrophs, the compounds - the electron donors - are oxidized in the cell, and the electrons are channeled into respiratory chains, ultimately producing ATP.

• Betaproteobacteria

  • The Betaproteobacteria consist of several groups of aerobic or facultative bacteria that are often highly versatile in their degradation capacities, but also contain chemolithotrophic genera (e.g., the ammonia-oxidising genus Nitrosomonas) and some phototrophs (members of the genera Rhodocyclus and Rubrivivax).

• Epsilonproteobacteria

  • Often the epsilonproteobacteria living in hydrothermal deep sea-vents exhibit chemolithotrophic features, and they are able to meet their energy needs by reducing or oxidixing chemical compounds.

• Hydrogen Oxidation

  • Most chemolithotrophic organisms are also autotrophic.