Shewanella amazonensis

A Microbial Biorealm page on the genus Shewanella amazonensis

Classification

Higher order taxa

Bacteria (Domain); Proteobacteria (Phylum); Gammaproteobacteria (Class); Alteromonadales (Order); Shewanellaceae (Family); Shewanella (Genus)

Species

NCBI: Taxonomy

Shewanella amazonensis

Description and significance

Shewanella amazonensis (strain ATC BAA-1098/SB2B) is a Gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, motile, polarly flagellated, rod-shaped eubacterium. It is exceptionally active in the anaerobic reduction of iron, manganese and sulfur compounds. It was isolated from shelf coastal muds, in intertidal sediments in the Amazon River delta, off the Amapa coast of Brazil.

Genome structure

Conventional phenotypic and chemotaxonomic analyses identified strain SB2BT as S. putrefaciens. However, PCR probes designed to recognize S. putrefaciens based on gyrB (encoding the B subunit of DNA gyrase, topoisomerase II) failed to generate a specific amplicon for SB2BT, indicating that this strain may represent a new species. To elucidate the phylogenetic status of SB2BT, its 16S rDNA and gyrB gene sequences were analysed. Both sequences differ from all known Shewanellae, suggesting that the organism does indeed deserve the status of new species. The G+C content of the DNA is 51.7 mol%. The type strain, SB2BT, has been deposited with the American Type Culture Collection as ATCC 700329T.

Cell structure and metabolism

Interesting features of cell structure; how it gains energy; what important molecules it produces.

Ecology

Habitat; symbiosis; contributions to environment.

Pathology

How does this organism cause disease? Human, animal, plant hosts? Virulence factors, as well as patient symptoms.

References

[Sample reference] Takai, K., Sugai, A., Itoh, T., and Horikoshi, K. "Palaeococcus ferrophilus gen. nov., sp. nov., a barophilic, hyperthermophilic archaeon from a deep-sea hydrothermal vent chimney". International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. 2000. Volume 50. p. 489-500.

Venkateswaran, K., M. E. Dollhopf, R. Aller, E. Stackebrandt, and K. H. Nealson. 1998. Shewanella amazonensis sp. nov., a novel metal-reducing facultative anaerobe from Amazonian shelf muds. International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology 48: 965-972.