Methanosarcina acetivorans.

Abstract

Methanosarcina acetivorans is a strictly anaerobic methane-producing archaeon (methanogen) that was isolated from marine sediment beneath a kelp bed in the Sumner branch of Scripps Canyon near La Jolla, California, in 1984. Over the years it has become a primary model to understand the genetics, biochemistry, and physiology of methanogens, microbes that play a critical role in several biogeochemical cycles, impact climate change, and have biotechnological value. The utility of M. acetivorans as a model is due in part to its extensive metabolic versatility.