Cultivation of Methanotophs

Methanotrophs pose a special challenge in cultivation and expansion due to metabolic needs and limitations. It is essential to identify the strain of methanotroph that is being isolated so that proper media can be prepared. Additionally proper measuring of conditions such as salinity, pH and temperature at the sampling site can provide insights into how to properly culture these species. Some forms of methanotrophs have also been shown to increase their growth alongside other satellite bacteria that are able to clean excess contaminates produced by methanotrophs. These problems are scaled when larger bioreactors would be needed to produce larger amounts of methanotrophs.