Everything about Chemosynthesis totally explained
Chemosynthesis is the biological conversion of one or more carbon molecules (usually
carbon dioxide or
methane) and nutrients into organic matter using the
oxidation of inorganic molecules (for example
hydrogen gas,
hydrogen sulfide) or methane as a source of energy, rather than sunlight, as in
photosynthesis. Large populations of animals can be supported by chemosynthetic
primary production at
hydrothermal vents,
methane clathrates,
cold seeps, and
whale falls.
Chemoautotrophs,
organisms that obtain carbon through chemosynthesis, and are responsible for the primary production in oxygen-deficient environments, generally fall into four groups:
methanogens,
halophiles,
sulfur reducers, and
thermoacidophiles.
Many microorganisms in dark regions of the oceans use chemosynthesis to produce biomass from 1-carbon molecules. Two categories can be distinguished. In the rare sites at which hydrogen molecules (H
2) are available, the energy available from the reaction between CO
2 and H
2 (leading to production of methane, CH
4) can be large enough to drive the production of biomass. Alternatively, in most oceanic environments, energy for chemosynthesis derives from reactions between O
2 and substances such as hydrogen sulfide or ammonia. In this second case, the chemosynthetic microorganisms are dependent on photosynthesis which occurs elsewhere and which produces the O
2 that they require. Many chemosynthetic microorganisms are consumed by other organisms in the ocean, and
symbiotic associations between chemosynthesizers and respiring heterotrophs are quite common.
It has been hypothesized that chemosynthesis may support life below the surface of
Mars,
Jupiter's moon
Europa, and other planets.
Hydrogen sulfide chemosynthesis -
CO2+O2+4
Molecular nanotechnology
The term chemosynthesis is also used in
molecular nanotechnology to refer to any
chemical synthesis where
reactions occur due to random thermal motion, a class which encompasses almost all of modern synthetic chemistry. This is contrasted with
mechanosynthesis, a hypothetical process where individual
molecules are mechanically manipulated to control reactions.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Chemosynthesis'.
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