Geobacillus kaustophilus
A Microbial Biorealm page on the genus Geobacillus kaustophilus
Classification
Higher order taxa
Domain: Bacteria; Phylum: Firmicutes; Class: Bacilli; Order: Bacilla; family:Bacillaceae [Others may be used. Use NCBI link to find]
Species
NCBI: Taxonomy |
Genus: Geobacillus species: kaustophilus
Description and significance
This microbe was isolated from the deep-sea sediment of the Mariana Trench (2). Its optimal growth is at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius with a temperature limit of 74 degrees Celsius (2). Bacillus is translated as “small rod,” and geo is “earth” or “soil” so the genus name is roughly translated to earth or soil small rod (6). In its species name, “kausto” means “heat” while “philus” means love (2). Therefore, it is a heating-loving bacteria. Geobacillus kaustophilus grow in aquatic environments. Other species in the genus Geobacillus can also be found in petroleum reservoirs and cool soil environments (3). Species in the Geobacillus genus can live in a wide variety of environments. The microbe can withstand a pH of 2 through 12, temperatures between 5 and 78 degrees Celsius, and a salinity of 0 to 30% (5).
Genome structure
Geobacillus kaustophilus is made up of a 3.54Mb chromosome. It is circular and has 3,544,776 base pairs. The microbe also consists of a 47.9kb plasmid. This, too, is circular and has 47,890 base pairs (2). After its genome was sequenced, the genes for protamine, spermine synthase, and tRNA methyltranferase were found. These genes are believed to have a role in the DNA/RNA stability of the microbe at high temperatures (2). The protamine-like gene, in particular, are unique to Geobacilus kaustophilus (5). Protamines enble the DNA of an organism to be more compact by binding to it. Spermine also plays a part in DNA stability and is the major polyamine in the microbe while tRNA methltranferase is responsible for the thermoadaptation of the microbe to its environment (5). Researchers have founded 3498 protein-coding sequences in Geobacillus kaustophilus, averaging about 862 nucleotides in size. These coding sequences were determined to make up about 86% of the chromosome (5).
Cell structure and metabolism
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Ecology
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Pathology
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Application to Biotechnology
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Current Research
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References
Edited by student of Rachel Larsen and Kit Pogliano