Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 9, 2026

Extracting DNA from the Gut Microbes of the Termite (Zootermopsis Angusticollis) and Visualizing Gut Microbes
Published on: May 28, 2007
The cellulolytic system of the termite gut
Helmut König1, Li Li, Jürgen Fröhlich
1Institute of Microbiology and Wine Research, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, 55099, Mainz, Germany. hkoenig@uni-mainz.de
Abstract:
The demand for the usage of natural renewable polymeric material is increasing in order to satisfy the future needs for energy and chemical precursors. Important steps in the hydrolysis of polymeric material and bioconversion can be performed by microorganisms. Over about 150 million years, termites have optimized their intestinal polysaccharide-degrading symbiosis. In the ecosystem of the "termite gut," polysaccharides are degraded from lignocellulose, such as cellulose and hemicelluloses, in 1 day, while lignin is only weakly attacked. The understanding of the principles of cellulose degradation in this natural polymer-degrading ecosystem could be helpful for the improvement of the biotechnological hydrolysis and conversion of cellulose, e.g., in the case of biogas production from natural renewable plant material in biogas plants. This review focuses on the present knowledge of the cellulose degradation in the termite gut.
More Related Videos
21:02Investigating the Microbial Community in the Termite Hindgut - Interview
Published on: May 28, 2007
17:36Testing Protozoacidal Activity of Ligand-lytic Peptides Against Termite Gut Protozoa in vitro (Protozoa Culture) and in vivo (Microinjection into Termite Hindgut)
Published on: December 29, 2010
Related Concept Videos
Microbes and Methanogenesis
Microbiota of the Large Intestine
Functions of the Gut Microbiota
Cellulose and Pectic Polysaccharides
As a cell matures, its cell wall specializes according to its type. For example, the parenchyma cells of...
Bacterial Phylum Verrucomicrobiota
Role of Microtubules in Cell Wall Deposition