Lithotroph

Lithotrophie denotes a term from biology: meeting the needs of living beings of reducing agents exclusively from inorganic substances.

The word Lithotrophie comes from the Greek and means, literally, from nurturing stones ( ancient Greek λίθος lithos "stone"; τροφή ancient Greek trophe - "Nutrition " ), where " lithos " / " stone " to inorganic substances is. The adjective to " Lithotrophie " is " lithotroph " ( lithotrophe creatures lithotrophic metabolism).

Reducing agents are required:

• Related to the change in building materials for syntheses of endogenous substances,
• Related to the energy metabolism chemotropher critters for energy-yielding redox reactions.

If the energy demand lithotrophic creatures covered from exergonic conversion processes ( Chemotrophie ), so it is called an chemolithotrophy, he is covered from light ( prototrophy ), so it is called an Photolithotrophie. If not only the reducing agent requirements, but also the demand for building materials (especially the carbon demand ) met from inorganic sources ( autotrophy ), this is called Chemolithoautotrophie or Photolithoautotrophie.

Examples of chemolithotrophic organisms and their conversion processes for energy:

• Hydrogenotrophic bacteria such as the type Cupriavidus necator:

• Bacteria of the genus Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans:

• Sulfate-reducing bacteria such as Desulfovibrio desulfuricans to the type:

The contrast is Organotrophie: meeting the needs of living beings of reducing agents in organic matter, for example, in animals, fungi, many bacteria.