Question

What are (i) methanogens (ii) Halophiles (iii) thermoacidophiles?

Answer 1

Hint: Archaea are a group of prokaryotes organisms which are able to survive in several different types of environment. The archaea are very similar to the bacteria and have a variety of different shapes and sizes. The archaea have a simple structure of cells which lack cell nuclei. The archaea are also known to produce several types of toxins and enzymes.

Complete answer:
Bacteria are microorganisms that produce several metabolic byproducts in the form of toxins and enzymes. The bacteria group consists of several microorganisms which are archaea and prokaryotic.

Methanogens are microorganisms that release methane as a byproduct through their metabolic processes. They are found in wetlands and are responsible for production of gases like methane, hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide. They are also found in the digestive tract of animals and humans. They are spherical shaped or rod-shaped bacteria and are mostly anaerobic. They are grouped under archaea. They are very sensitive to the presence of oxygen and cannot tolerate oxygen stress. Most of the methanogens play an important role by removing excess hydrogen and fermentation products produced by anaerobic respiration by other forms. They use carbon dioxide as a source of carbon and hydrogen as a reducing agent to produce methane.

Halophiles are the bacteria classified into the domain archaea and are found high in high salt concentrated environments. They are salt loving organisms which tolerate extreme high salinity. The halophiles have adapted certain adaptations such as excluding salts from their cytoplasm to avoid protein aggregation. In order to prevent desiccation through osmotic movement of water the halophiles increase the internal osmolarity of the cell. The important members of this genera are Haloferax, Halococcus and Halobacterium.

Thermoacidophiles: An extremophilic microorganism which can grow in both high thermal environments and acetic conditions is known as the thermoacidophiles. They are found in hot springs and sulphur producing earth's crust or in deep sea vents and even in acid mine drainage. They can tolerate high temperature and low pH. Many of them are aerobic but a few such as the Acidiobales are obligate and anaerobic

Note: The archaea is the domain consisting of prokaryotic organisms which are very similar to the bacteria but they also contain some unique characters. Methanogens are methane producing archaea. The archaea living in extreme saline conditions is known as halophiles. The archaea representative organisms that are able to live in both high temperature and acidic conditions are thermoacidophiles