 Archaea (source code)

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= Archaea
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<Archaea> are a major evolutionary lineage distinct from <bacteria>. The cellular comparison here concerns the <prokaryotic> members of <archaea>; see <two-domain system> for broader <clade> usage. Their <biological cells> have a <nucleoid> rather than a membrane-bounded <cell nucleus>, yet aspects of <DNA replication>, <transcription> and <biological translation> resemble those of <eukaryotes>. Their characteristic <lipids> differ chemically from the usual bacterial membrane <lipids>, and their <cell walls>, when present, lack <peptidoglycan>. See https://openstax.org/books/biology-2e/pages/22-2-structure-of-prokaryotes-bacteria-and-archaea[OpenStax Biology 2e, 22.2: archaeal distinctions].

Some <archaea> perform <methanogenesis>, producing <methane> as part of their <metabolism>. <Archaea> also inhabit ordinary soils and oceans: extreme habitats do not define the lineage. See https://openstax.org/books/biology-2e/pages/22-1-prokaryotic-diversity[OpenStax Biology 2e, 22.1: moderate and extreme environments]. Woese and Fox's 1977 analysis of <ribosomal RNA> distinguished the methanogenic group they called archaebacteria from typical <bacteria>. Their proposed three primary lines of descent were a historical interpretation, rather than the final resolution of deep <phylogenetics>. See https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.74.11.5088[Woese and Fox, 1977: Phylogenetic structure of the prokaryotic domain].

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