methanogen

[me-than-uh-juhn, -jen]

noun

Microbiology.

1. any of a diverse group of widely distributed archaea that occur in anaerobic environments, as the intestinal tracts of animals, freshwater and marine sediments, and sewage, and are capable of producing methane from a limited number of substrates, including carbon dioxide and hydrogen, acetate, and methylamines: an important source of natural gas.

Other Word Forms

• methanogenic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of methanogen¹

First recorded in 1975–80; methan(e) ( def. ) + -o- + -gen

Example Sentences

"Before us, no one ever tried to study an enzyme from such a methanogen for an electrode-based gas conversion," says Tristan Wagner.

Read more on Science Daily

Still, much of Earth's methane is produced in methanogenesis, the biological process by which methanogen bacteria consume carbon dioxide and belch methane.

Read more on Salon

Instead, the methanogen has found a way to create methane in this low energy environment, which it may not use to reproduce or divide, but to replace or repair broken parts.

Read more on The Guardian

The carbon-containing gas is significant because most methane on Earth is produced by methanogen microbes, which are common in oxygen-poor environments.

Read more on Scientific American