Bacillus clausii

From MicrobeWiki, the student-edited microbiology resource

A Microbial Biorealm page on the genus Bacillus clausii

Classification

Higher order taxa

Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Bacillales; Bacillaceae; Bacillus

Species

Bacillus clausii

Description and significance

Describe the appearance, habitat, etc. of the organism, and why it is important enough to have its genome sequenced. Describe how and where it was isolated. Include a picture or two (with sources) if you can find them.


Bacillus clausii is a Gram positive, and like most of the Bacillus bacteria, it is rod-shaped. B. clausii is alkaliphilic and produces M-protease, a high-alkaline protease that is industrially important for heavy-duty detergents. [Kageyama] The alkaliphilic nature of the organism has also proved it to be useful in preventing and treating various gastrointestinal disorders as an oral bacteriotherapy. [Senesi] This organism can be found in many alkaline environments, including soil and concrete. The B. clausii strain KSM-K16 was obtained from soil samples, and identified as a new strain of Bacillus based on 16S sequencing along with other classification techniques (eg. DNA-DNA hybridization) [Kageyama]


http://www.springerlink.com/content/f6h65u65125t4811/fulltext.html http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=92655

Genome structure

Describe the size and content of the genome. How many chromosomes? Circular or linear? Other interesting features? What is known about its sequence? Does it have any plasmids? Are they important to the organism's lifestyle?

The Bacillus clausii KSM-K16 complete genome is one circular chromosome composed of 4,303,871 nucleotides. The genome represents 4204 genes, of which 4096 are protein coding. The GC content of B. clausii KSM-K16 is 44%.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=genome&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=Overview&list_uids=565

Cell structure and metabolism

Describe any interesting features and/or cell structures; how it gains energy; what important molecules it produces.

Ecology

Describe any interactions with other organisms (included eukaryotes), contributions to the environment, effect on environment, etc.

Pathology

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

Application to Biotechnology

Does this organism produce any useful compounds or enzymes? What are they and how are they used?

Current Research

Enter summaries of the most recent research here--at least three required

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.

Edited by Ankur Patel of Rachel Larsen and Kit Pogliano