Pyrococcus chitonophagus
species of hyperthermophilic archaeon that degrades chitin
Pyrococcus chitonophagus (Thermococcus chitonophagus pre-2016) is a chitin-degrading, hyperthermophilic archaeon isolated from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent. It is anaerobic, round to slightly irregular coccus-shaped, 1.2–2.5 μm in diameter, and motile by means of a tuft of flagella.
History
In 1995, it was discovered off the West of the Mexican Coast 2,600m in the water. Since there was DNA–DNA hybridization, 16S rRNA, and the GC-content was 46.5%. Upon analysis, the chitonophagus was identified to be of the "Thermococcus" genus (see Thermococcus to Pyrococcus chitonophagus). Its thermophilic quality indicates it can survive in very extreme temperatures, also known as an extremophile. The importance is derived from it being the first nonrecombinant chitinase from archaea that was discovered.
Characteristics
Pyrococcus chitonophagus is an archaeon, which is a single-celled organism, lacks cell nuclei, and reproduces asexually. As a member of Thermococci, it grows on organic substances, and have circular DNA. Thermococcales are often model organisms. All of the Thermococcales need sulfur and can ferment sugars for carbon.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Pyrococcus chitonophagus” as species of hyperthermophilic archaeon that degrades chitin. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the science & nature register because the source frames it as species of hyperthermophilic archaeon that degrades chitin. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q16993064. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2016 and 1995.
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This entry incorporates text from “Pyrococcus chitonophagus” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.