"''Candidatus'' Thiolava", represented by its sole species "''Candidatus'' Thiolava veneris" (meaning ''Venus's hair''), is a genus of bacteria discovered growing in stringlike mats after an eruption of the

submarine volcano Submarine volcanoes are underwater vents or fissures in the Earth's surface from which magma can erupt. Many submarine volcanoes are located near areas of tectonic plate formation, known as mid-ocean ridges. The volcanoes at mid-ocean ridges ...

Tagoro near the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

. The International Institute of Species Exploration named ''Thiolava veneris'' one of its 2018 Top 10 New Species. The mats host a wide variety of other sea life.

Physical characteristics

''Thiolava veneris'' was found growing in laterally extensive mats in an area recently obliterated by underwater volcanism. The bacteria were discovered growing at about 130 m water depth, near the summit of the submarine volcano Tagoro. The mats of white, hair-like filaments formed by this bacterium cover an area of approximately 2,000 m² around the newly formed volcanic cone. Each bacteria is 3-6 μm, and form white trichomes, or chains consisting of three helical strands surrounded by a protective sheath. The sheaths are 36 to 90 μm wide and up to 3 cm long.

Metabolism

Unusually, ''T. veneris'' can grow heterotrophically or chemolithotrophically, utilizing sulfur and nitrogen supplied by the volcano. Thiolava lacks an enzyme that would prohibit deposition of elemental sulfur within the cytoplasm, thus allowing for mineral deposition within the cytoplasmic space.

References

Thiotrichales Bacteria genera Extremophiles {{Gammaproteobacteria-stub