Abstract
Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) represent a diverse collection of motile prokaryotes that biomineralize intracellular, membrane-bounded, tens-of-nanometer-sized crystals of a magnetic mineral called magnetosomes. Magnetosome minerals consist of either magnetite (Fe3O4) or greigite (Fe3S4) and cause cells to align along the Earth’s geomagnetic field lines as they swim, a trait called magnetotaxis. MTB are known to mainly inhabit the oxic–anoxic interface (OAI) in water columns or sediments of aquatic habitats and it is currently thought that magnetosomes function as a means of making chemotaxis more efficient in locating and maintaining an optimal position for growth and survival at the OAI. Known cultured and uncultured MTB are phylogenetically associated with the Alpha-, Gamma- and Deltaproteobacteria classes of the phylum Proteobacteria, the Nitrospirae phylum and the candidate division OP3, part of the Planctomycetes-Verrucomicrobia-Chlamydiae (PVC) bacterial superphylum. MTB are generally thought to be ubiquitous in aquatic environments as they are cosmopolitan in distribution and have been found in every continent although for years MTB were thought to be restricted to habitats with pH values near neutral and at ambient temperature. Recently, however, moderate thermophilic and alkaliphilic MTB have been described including: an uncultured, moderately thermophilic magnetotactic bacterium present in hot springs in northern Nevada with a probable upper growth limit of about 63 °C; and several strains of obligately alkaliphilic MTB isolated in pure culture from different aquatic habitats in California, including the hypersaline, extremely alkaline Mono Lake, with an optimal growth pH of >9.0.
Highlights
A number of eukaryotic organisms are known to use the
The most well understood example of magnetoreception is found within the prokaryotes and involves a group of motile, aquatic bacteria known as the magnetotactic bacteria (MTB)
In a recent environmental study, Lefèvre et al [15] discovered an uncultured, moderately thermophilic magnetotactic bacterium in hot springs located in northern Nevada
Summary
A number of eukaryotic organisms are known to use the (DUWK¶Vmagnetic field for orientation and navigation (e.g., pigeon, salmon, bats, etc.), a behavior referred to as magnetoreception [1]. In MTB, the magnetoreceptive behavior is called magnetotaxis and LV D UHVXOW RI WKH FHOOV¶ DELOLW\ WR biomineralize intracellular, membrane-bounded, tens-of-nanometer-sized crystals of a magnetic mineral consisting of either magnetite (Fe3O4) or greigite (Fe3S4) [2]. These structures, termed magnetosomes, cause cells tR DOLJQ DORQJ WKH MTB are ubiquitous in almost all types of aquatic environments [2] and are cosmopolitan in distribution as they have been found on every continent [7] Despite their broad phylogenetic diversity and wide geographic distribution, no MTB have been classified as extremophilic until recently because:. It is important to note that the work described in this review is focused upon MTB recovered or isolated directly from environmental samples, rather than those inferred indirectly via the detection of magnetotaxis-specific genes in metagenomes
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