View source for Thermosphaera

{{Short description|Genus of archaea}}
{{Speciesbox
| genus = Thermosphaera
| parent_authority = Huber et al. 1998
| species = aggregans
| authority = Huber et al. 1998
}}

'''''Thermosphaera''''' is a [[genus]] of the [[Desulfurococcaceae]]. They are a group of prokaryotic organisms which have been discovered in extremely hot environments such as sulfur springs, volcanoes, and magma pools. Isolates of ''Thermosphaera'' were first identified in 1998 from the [[Obsidian Pool]] in [[Yellowstone National Park]].

== Cell structure and metabolism ==

Cells of ''Thermosphaera'' are [[cocci]] (spherical) and form grape-like aggregates during the exponential growth phase. In the late exponential and stationary growth phases, smaller groups, including some single cells, were visible. Aggregates were shown to have several [[flagella]]; single cells could have as many as eight. The cell envelope is an amorphous layer covering a cytoplasmic membrane. Temperatures exceeding 92&nbsp;°C inhibits growth, as does sulfur and hydrogen. ''Thermosphaera'' cells are heterotrophic, processing energy from yeast.

== Ecology ==

''Thermosphaera'' are found mainly in sulfuric pools, where they thrive on the extreme temperatures. In terms of research and economic significance, learning more about these organisms and their properties may help advancements in biotechnology.

== Genome structure ==

Sequencing the 16S rRNA of ''Thermosphaera'' showed that this isolate was a member of the group Crenarchaeota and closely related to ''[[Staphylothermus]]'' and ''[[Desulfurococcus]]''.<ref>See the [[National Center for Biotechnology Information|NCBI]] [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/Taxonomy/Browser/wwwtax.cgi?mode=Info&id=54253 webpage on Thermosphaera].  Data extracted from the {{cite web | url=http://ftp.ncbi.nih.gov/pub/taxonomy/ | title=NCBI taxonomy resources | publisher=[[National Center for Biotechnology Information]] | accessdate=2007-03-19}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of Archaea genera]]

==References==
{{Reflist|1}}

==Further reading==
* {{ cite journal | author = Huber R | author2 = Dyba D | author3 = Huber H | author4 = Burggraf S | author5 = Rachel R | date = 1998 | title = Sulfur-inhibited Thermosphaera aggregans sp. nov., a new genus of hyperthermophilic archaea isolated after its prediction from environmentally derived 16S rRNA sequences | journal =  Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol.  | volume =  48 | pages = 31–38 | pmid = 9542073 | doi = 10.1099/00207713-48-1-31| doi-access = free }}
* {{ cite journal | author = Burggraf S | author2 =  Huber H | author3 = Stetter KO | date = 1997 | title = Reclassification of the crenarchael orders and families in accordance with 16S rRNA sequence data | journal =  Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol.  | volume =  47 | pages = 657–660 | pmid = 9226896 | doi = 10.1099/00207713-47-3-657 | issue = 3| doi-access = free }}
* {{ cite journal | author = Huber R | author2 = Burggraf S | author3 = Mayer T | author4 = Barns SM | author5 = Rossnagel P | author6 = Stetter KO | date = 1995 | title = Isolation of a hyperthermophilic archaeum predicted by in situ RNA analysis | journal =  Nature  | volume =  376 | pages = 57–58 | pmid = 7541115 | doi = 10.1038/376057a0 | issue = 6535| bibcode = 1995Natur.376...57H | s2cid = 4335718 }}
* {{ cite journal | display-authors = 6 | author = Zillig W | author2 = Stetter KO | author3 = Prangishvilli D | author4 = Schafer W | author5 = Wunderl S | author6 = Janekovic D | author7 = Holz I | author8 = Palm P | date = 1982 | title = Desulfurococcaceae, the second family of the extremely thermophilic, anaerobic, sulfur-respiring Thermoproteales | journal =  Zentralbl. Bakteriol. Parasitenkd. Infektionskr. Hyg. Abt. 1 Orig.  | volume =  C3 | pages = 304–317 }}

==External links==
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q7783254|from2=Q12621107}}

[[Category:Monotypic archaea genera]]
[[Category:Thermoproteota]]

{{archaea-stub}}