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TY - JOUR AU - Fischer, F. AU - Zillig, W. AU - Stetter, K. O. AU - Schreiber, G. PY - 1983 DA - 1983/02/01 TI - Chemolithoautotrophic metabolism of anaerobic extremely thermophilic archaebacteria JO - Nature SP - 511 EP - 513 VL - 301 IS - 5900 AB - Several types of extremely thermophilic archaebacteria have recently been isolated from solfataric water holes, hot springs and hot sea floors1–6. It has been shown that some of them can live using sulphur respiration of reduced carbon substrates as a source of energy, a type of metabolism previously described for the eubacterium Desulfuromonas7. We report here that several extremely thermophilic archaebacteria can live with carbon dioxide as their sole carbon source, obtaining energy from the oxidation of hydrogen by sulphur, producing hydrogen sulphide. They are thus capable of a new type of anaerobic, purely chemolithoautotrophic metabolism, a possible primaeval mode of life. SN - 1476-4687 UR - https://doi.org/10.1038/301511a0 DO - 10.1038/301511a0 ID - Fischer1983 ER -