Archaebacteria and Eubacteria are known different types of bacteria. These bacteria differ in many aspects of life. Archaebacteria are said to be older than Eubacteria. However, Eubacteria are most studied bacteria nowadays mainly due to their effects in our lives since they can be found in foods and in human beings unlike Archaebacteria, which are found in extreme conditions. They can survive in extreme heat and poisonous gases that are not bearable to Eubacteria.
Archaebacteria
The age of Archaebacteria dates back to the beginning of planet earth compared to Eubacteria. They were among the first organisms that were found on this planet. This explains the extreme conditions that they are predominantly found in. The conditions were unbearable at the beginning of planet earth. In spite of these extreme and unbearable conditions, these bacteria survived.
Archaebacteria are single-celled and known as prokaryotes. They are classified into three groups called phyla. These groups are methanogens, the thermoacidophiles, and the halophiles. The halophiles can survive in salt contrary to the majority of bacteria that do not survive in salt. The methanogens change hydrogen and carbon dioxide into methane to yield energy. The last group, thermoacidophiles, as the name suggests, survive in acidic conditions and high temperatures.
Eubacteria
On the other hand, Eubacteria are the commonly known bacteria taking effects in our lives. Unlike Archaebacteria, these bacteria are can only survive in neutral conditions. These conditions include human body and foods. Generally, these bacteria have a complex structure.
Eubacteria also have phyla groups known as spirochetes, Cyanobacteria, and gram-positive bacteria. Cyanobacteria utilize the energy from the sun for food production. They are mostly found in water. Energy is also released as a by-product by these bacteria. Spirochetes are gram-negative. These types of bacteria may be parasites where they live in host cells. They can also live independently. The gram positive Eubacteria are used economically in production of some foods.
The fact that Eubacteria are capable of surviving under neutral conditions led to intense scientific research about their uses and lifestyle. They can also be used for economic reasons. That is why they are studied more than Archaebacteria. Archaebacteria have not received much of attention in terms of today’s studies and uses due to their extreme conditions. The hostile environments made it less-interesting to study and to use Archaebacteria.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, Eubacteria differ with Archaebacteria in living conditions. They can only thrive under neutral environmental conditions whereas Archaebacteria survive in hostile environmental conditions. Eubacteria have complex structures whereas Archaebacteria have single cell structure. Eubacteria have four phyla groups whereas Archaebacteria have three phyla groups. Again, Eubacteria are commonly known and commonly used these days even for economic purposes.
