Regulation of Atmospheric Methane Levels by Microorganisms: Could Methanotrophs Play a Role in Mitigating Climate Change?

Global warming refers to the long-term increase in the Earth's surface temperature, which can lead to significant and wide spread impacts on the planet. These effects include rising sea levels, changes in precipitation patterns, and more frequent and severe natural disasters. Atmospheric levels of methane (CH4) have risen by over 150% since the pre-industrial era, with agriculture and livestock production being major contributors. This review aims to explore the effect of climate change on methanotrophic microorganisms and the potential of managing microbial communities to reduce CH4 emissions, thereby mitigating CH4 emissions as part of broader climate change strategies. While methanogens are CH4-producing bacteria, methanotrophic bacteria can utilise CH4 as a source of energy source and can consume large amounts of CH4 directly from both the atmosphere and soils. Many factors influence the balance of microbes acting as a sink or consumers of greenhouse gasses including changes in terrestrial and marine environments. Temperature, CO2 levels and precipitation have all been shown to have a profound effect on the ecology of methanogens, driving positive feedback which exacerbates the rate of climate change. Reducing CH4 emissions is an important aspect of mitigating the impacts of climate change, and it may be theoretically possible to mitigate a considerable portion of global CH4 emissions by managing microbial communities in various environments by reviewing land use and farming management practices. Examples of these practices include the reforestation of native woodlands, altering the management of organic materials in rice paddies and the reduction of CH4 release from ruminant livestock utilizing additives to animal feeds such as red seaweed or hormonal products such as bovine somatotropin. Although efforts to mitigate CH4-induced climate change effects are ongoing, further research is required to better elucidate the mechanisms involved in methanogenesis and the potential for reducing CH4 emissions through targeted interventions.