Glycine betaine is accumulated as a compatible solute in many photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic bacteria-the last being unable to synthesize the compound-and thus large pools of betaine can be expected to be present in hypersaline environments. A variety of aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms degrade betaine to among other products trimethylamine and methylamine, in a number of different pathways. Curiously, very few of these betaine breakdown processes have yet been identified in hypersaline environments. Trimethylamine can also be formed by bacterial reduction of trimethylamine N-oxide (also by extremely halophilic archaeobacteria). Degradation of trimethylamine in hypersaline environments by halophilic methanogenic bacteria is relatively well documented, and leads to the formation of methane, carbon dioxide and ammonia.
Die ganze Salzmasse roch, besonders an frischen Bruchstellen, stark nach Trimethylamin. An ein pr~ifermiertes Vorhandensein dieser Base im Salz ist nicht zu denken. Die Annahme liegt n/iher, dass sich dieselbe aus Cholin bildet. (The whole salt mass smelled strongly of trimethylamine, in particular at new fracture planes. It cannot be imagined that the trimethylamine was originally present in the salt. It seems more probable that it was formed from choline) (Schweinfurth & Lewin 1898).