Sulfate-reducing bacteria

Sulfate-reducing bacteria comprise several groups of bacteria that use sulfate as an oxidizing agent, reducing it to sulfide. Most can also use oxidized sulfur compounds such as sulfite and thiosulfate , or elemental sulfur. This is called dissimilatory sulfur metabolism, since it is not assimilated into any organic compounds. Sulphate-reducing bacteria have been considered as a possible way to deal with acid mine waters other bacteria produce.

The sulfate-reducing have been treated as phenotypic group, together with the other sulfur-reducing bacteria, for identification purposes. They are found in several different phylogenetic lines. Three lines are included among the Proteobacteria, all in the delta subgroup:

• Desulfobacterales
• Desulfovibrionales
• Syntrophobacterales

A fourth group including thermophiles is given its own phylum, the Thermodesulfobacteria. The remaining sulfate-reducers are included with other bacteria among the Nitrospirae and the gram-positive Peptococcaceae - for instance Thermodesulfovibrio and Desulfotomaculum , respectively. There is also a single genus of Archaea capable of sulfate reduction, Archaeoglobus.