Chrysiogenes

Chrysiogenes arsenatis is a species of bacterium given its own phylum or division, called the Chrysiogenetes. It has a unique lifestyle and biochemistry. It is a chemolithoautotroph meaning that it uses chemical means to digest rock for energy and does not require organic matter for its existence. In this organisms case, it eats arsenic. Arsenic is usually toxic to life, but these organisms use arsenite , an oxidized form of arsenic, as an electron donor to create energy. Chrysiogenes arsenatis is found in environments rich in arsenite, such as the arsenic-contaminated sediments of Lake Coeur D'Alene in Idaho, or in a gold mine in the Northern Territory of Australia.