Thermoplasma is a genus of
archaea. It belongs to the
Thermoplasmata, which thrive in acidic and high-temperature environments. Thermoplasma are
facultative anaerobes and respire using
sulfur and organic carbon. They do not contain a cell wall but instead contain a unique membrane composed mainly of a tetraether
lipoglycan containing atypical archaeal tetraether lipid attached to a
glucose- and
mannose-containing oligosaccharide. This lipoglycan is presumably responsible for the acid and thermal stability of the Thermoplasma membrane.
Reysenbach, A-L (2001). "Family I. Thermoplasmataceae fam. nov.". In DR Boone; RW Castenholz (eds.). Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology Volume 1: The Archaea and the deeply branching and phototrophic Bacteria (2nd ed.). New York: Springer Verlag.
ISBN978-0-387-98771-2.