What is a terminal electron accepting process (TEAP) for bacterial respiration?
When bacteria metabolize organic matter to obtain energy, electrons are transferred from an organic electron donor through cellular machinery that collects energy for the use of the cell and finally to a terminal electron acceptor. Substances which can receive electrons include reducible compounds such as oxygen, nitrate, sulfate, some organic compounds and oxidized forms of metal. These REDOX reactions are of interest not only because they allow organisms to obtain energy, but also because the electron acceptors are fundamentally changed with respect to geochemical potential, toxicity, mineralogy, etc.
