Kingdom Archaebacteria

General Description:

·         -Single celled (unicellular)  prokaryotes

·         -No nucleus or membrane bound organelles

·         -Have protein like cell walls and a cell membrane

·         -Lack peptidoglycan cell walls

·         -Reproduce asexually

·        - Live in some of Earth’s most extreme environments: salty, hot, acidic and deep ocean

·         -Grouped (usually) according to where they live

·         -Autotrophs- use chemiosmosis

·         -Three divisions of Archaebacteria:       Methanogens: methane producing organisms       Thermophiles: These can live in extremely hot, acidic environments like sulfur springs.       Halophiles: Can only live in bodies of concentrated salt water, like the Dead Sea.  Defining Characteristics: ·     -    Living near extreme temperatures and places (cell wall allow this) ·     -    have protein rather than peptidoglycan cell walls Adaptations: ·      -   Ability to endure extreme conditions- allows Archaebacteria to hide in extreme places from predators ·       -  Metabolize things that you would not recognize as food in extreme places- A large factor of being able to do chemiosmosis is due to the fact of living in extreme temps. ·         Reduce mineral compounds (pyrite) Ecological Importance:  -     Cleaning up the environment t: Archaea may also be enlisted to aid in cleaning up contaminated sites (petroleum spills) ·         Live in extreme places that are thought to have no life what so ever ·         Studies of Archaebacteria help scientist regroup Archaebacteria from bacteria and Eukarya  1.) Methanococcus jannaschii 2.) Habitat- Deep oceanic thermal vents      Niche- A food source to organisms 3.) -bacteria was originally isolates from a sediment sample collected from the sea floor - grows at pressure of up to more than 200 - grows at an optimum temp. of 85 degrees C - Produces methane - represents first complete genome of an autotrophic organism

Thermus aquaticus
Kingdom: Archaebacteria
Phylum: Deinococcus-Thermus
Class: Deinococci
Order: Thermales
Genus: Thermus
Species: T. aquaticus

Methanopyrus kandleri
Kingdom: Archaebacteria
Phylum: Euryarchaeota
Class: Methanopyri
Order: Mathnopyrales
Family: Methanopyraceae
Genus: Methanopyrus
Species: M. kandleri