Thermodesulfobacteriota

The Thermodesulfobacteriota, or Desulfobacterota, are a phylum of anaerobic Gram-negative bacteria. Many representatives are sulfate-reducing bacteria, others can grow by disproportionation of various sulphur species, reduction or iron, or even use external surfaces as electron acceptors (exoelectrogens). They have highly variable morphology: vibrio, rods, cocci, as well as filamentous cable bacteria. Individual members of Desulfobacterota are also studied for their bacterial nanowires or syntrophic relationships.left|thumb|Phylogenetic tree of prokaryotes based on ribosomal proteins and [[RNA polymerase Desulfobacterota are closely related to Pseudomonadota/Proteobacteria, Myxococcota, and Bdellovibrionota.|226x226px]] == Taxonomy == The bacterial phylum Desulfobacterota has been created by merging: 1) the well-established class Thermodesulfobacteria, 2) the proposed phylum Dadabacteria, and 3) various taxa separated from the abandoned non-monophyletic class "Deltaproteobacteria" alongside three other phyla: Myxococcota, Bdellovibrionota, and SAR324.

== Environment == In contrast to their close relatives, the aerobic phyla Myxococcota and Bdellovibrionota, Desulfobacterota are predominantly anaerobic. They likely retained their anaerobic lifestyle since before the Great Oxidation Event.