Archaea produce methane anaerobically from carbon dioxide and hydrogen or acetate.
Methanogens, strictly anaerobic archaea, make CH4 in wetlands, rice paddies, ruminant guts and landfills. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, over 25 times CO2 over 100 years.
Methanogens use H2/CO2, acetate or methyl compounds. They need strictly anaerobic conditions. Methane is used in biogas.
Example: methanogens live in cattle rumens.
Archaea produce methane anaerobically from carbon dioxide and hydrogen or acetate.
Methanogenesis is one of the 54 topics in Microbiology. It is rated Advanced, so it suits learners who want specialist depth. Related topics in this area include Microbial Consortia, Chemolithotrophy, Biofilms.
Cattle belching contributes to agricultural methane.
Work through the Beginner topics in Microbiology first, such as Microorganisms, Bacteria, Archaea, then return to Methanogenesis. Advanced topics assume the Intermediate vocabulary.
The closest topics to Methanogenesis are Microbial Consortia, Chemolithotrophy, Biofilms, Cyanobacteria. Comparing them side by side is a good way to see how the ideas connect.
Read the summary and the in-depth section, then use the quick check on the interactive lesson for Methanogenesis. To practise the whole of Microbiology, use the Microbiology quiz.
Methanogenesis: Archaea produce methane anaerobically from carbon dioxide and hydrogen or acetate. Microbial Consortia: Cooperating microbial communities divide metabolic labour, as in syntrophic methane production. Read both side by side and note what each one explains.
First, read the summary and write the definition in your own words. Second, read the in-depth section and note any example. Third, compare it with Microbial Consortia and explain the difference aloud. Finally, take the Microbiology quiz and come back to this page for any question you miss.
Cooperating microbial communities divide metabolic labour, as in syntrophic methane production.
🦠 MicrobiologyMicrobes obtain energy from oxidising inorganic compounds such as hydrogen sulfide or ammonia.
🦠 MicrobiologyStructured communities of microbes embedded in a self-made matrix, resistant to antibiotics and immune attack.
🦠 MicrobiologyPhotosynthetic bacteria that oxygenated Earth's atmosphere billions of years ago.
🦠 Microbiology