Final answer:
Over 99 percent of bacteria and archaea cannot be successfully cultured in a laboratory setting due to special growth requirements and some being obligate intracellular parasites.
Step-by-step explanation:
Over 99 percent of bacteria and archaea cannot be successfully cultured in a laboratory setting. This is mainly because they have special requirements for growth that remain unknown to scientists, such as needing specific micronutrients, pH, temperature, pressure, co-factors, or co-metabolites. Some bacteria cannot be cultured because they are obligate intracellular parasites and cannot be grown outside a host cell.