Dr. Kyle Costa

This lab studies the physiology of members of the methanogenic Archaea (the methanogens). Annually, methanogens produce over one billion tons of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and are the primary consumers of fermentatively produced hydrogen in anaerobic environments. While methanogens catalyze an important step in Earth’s carbon cycle, key details of their metabolism remain unknown. In an effort to understand some of these mysteries, these researchers leverage techniques in molecular biology and biochemistry to characterize methanogenic metabolism.