User talk:50.64.54.239/sandbox

Assignment 2 : Acetogens
The topic of Acetogens is a notable subject since they are a very diverse group and are found on many environments  such as soil, lakes, and oceans and even in the GI tract of animals and termites and they play a important role in each of those environments. Based on the keyword search in literature databases, there are over 4500 publications, indicating the high significance of these bacteria and the crucial role they play in the enviournment they reside in.

The article gives a very basic description of acetogens and their respiration mechanism and despite the vast information available about the acetogens, the Wikipedia page contains little to no information regarding the roles they play in different habitats. Therefore, to improve this page, a subsection named “metabolic roles” will be added which will include 4 main topics. Firstly, the role of acetogens as “Hydrogen gas sinks” indicate that they enhance biodegradative capacity in anaerobic environments by using up hydrogen gases; further discussion will be their role as nutrient providers in the human digestive system and  their benefits  for the host and its inhabiting microbiota. Secondly, the ability to use vast number of different substrates such as alcohols, lactates and fatty acids instead of just carbon dioxide and hydrogen, makes acetogens an important contributer to the food chain by the following examples: taking over functions of primary fermenters and or converting the substrates such as lactate or alchohols that are otherwise restricted to syntrophs. Thirdly, acetogens have shown to cooperate with methanogens in oceans, in a way that methanogens removes acetate in favor of acetogens while the acetogen releases hydrogen gas for methanogens to use. Lastly, the study of metabolic roles of acetogens have pointed to corrosion of steel such as the ones in water pipelines. They provide the carbon source of SRB of the genus Desulfovibrio, by means of producing acetate.

These additions expand on the significant roles of acetogens in the enviournemnts they reside in and help the readers obtain a bigger understanding of how important they are.

—Aryag469 (talk) 17:00, 28 September 2017 (UTC)