Strange Food

All living things are made mainly of carbon. Animals get this carbon from consuming either other animals or plants. Plants get their carbon from carbon dioxide gas in the air through a process (photosynthesis) partially enabled by sunlight.

So what about bacteria?

It is perhaps unsurprising after reading this far, that bacteria can find food different from that of both animals and plants – this does not have to be the case however. Some bacteria can use photosynthesis and some consume other bacteria (eg the interestingly named Vampirococcus that burrows into its prey and ‘sucks out’ the insides).

Bacteria can also employ a third tactic – they can use carbon dioxide from the air but the energy required to split this molecule for use come not from light, but from a chemical reaction. Some of these bacteria get the energy they need from chemical elements such as iron, sulphur, hydrogen, or nitrogen. These elements are all changed by these mechanisms in some way and in many cases this is useful to us.

t Back      Return to Introduction      Next u