Abstract
Ni.tro.so.cal.da.ce'ae. N.L. masc. n.
Nitrosocaldus
type genus of the family; ‐
aceae
ending to denote family; N.L. fem. pl. n.
Nitrosocaldaceae
the
Nitrosocaldus
family.
Cells are irregular cocci and divide by binary fission. Strictly aerobic. Thermophilic, neutrophilic, and lithoautotrophic archaea that are able to gain energy via ammonia oxidation to nitrite. Membrane lipids contain glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) bound to monoglycosidic, diglycosidic, phosphohexose, and hexose‐phosphohexose headgroups. Like other described
Thaumarchaeota
, members of this family contain crenarchaeol as a major membrane core lipid. However, their membrane lipids are characterized by the presence of the high abundances of acyclic and cyclized glycerol trialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GTGTs). Respiratory lipoquinones are saturated and monounsaturated menaquinones with six isoprenoid units. Cells and molecular markers have been found in neutral or slightly alkaline geothermal environments, such as hot springs and subsurface gold mines. At present, the family
Ca
. Nitrosocaldaceae only harbors a single genus, which is so far represented by only one species. Therefore, future phylogenetic analysis of additional cultivated representatives may reveal further subdivisions within the family.
DNA G+C content (mol%):36.8–41.7%.
Type genus: Candidatus
Nitrosocaldus
de la Torre, Walker, Ingalls, Könneke and Stahl 2008, 815.
Taxonomic and Nomenclature Notes
According to the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN), the taxonomic status of the family
Candidatus Nitrosocaldaceae
is: preferred name (not correct name) (last update, February 2025)
*
.
LPSN classification:
Archaea
/
Thermoproteati
/
Thermoproteota
/
incertae sedis
/
Candidatus Nitrosocaldales
/
Candidatus Nitrosocaldaceae
The family
Candidatus Nitrosocaldaceae
can also be recovered in the Genome Taxonomy Database (GTDB) as
f__Nitrosocaldaceae
(version v220)
**
.
GTDB classification:
d__Archaea
/
p__Thermoproteota
/
c__Nitrososphaeria
/
o__Nitrososphaerales
/
f__Nitrosocaldaceae
*
Meier‐Kolthoff
et al. (
2022
).
Nucleic Acids Res
,
50
,
D801
–
D807
; DOI:
10.1093/nar/gkab902
**
Parks
et al. (
2022
).
Nucleic Acids Res
,
50
,
D785
–
D794
; DOI:
10.1093/nar/gkab776