Red, Extremely Halophilic, but not Archaeal: The Physiology and Ecology of Salinibacter ruber, a Bacterium Isolated from Saltern Crystallizer Ponds

Abstract

Solar saltern evaporation ponds, found in many locations worldwide in subtropical and tropical coastal areas, provide us with excellent model systems for the study of microbial processes at high salt concentrations.In multi-pond saltern environments a broad range of salt concentrations is found, increasing from seawater (around 35 g dissolved salts per liter) to brines with salt concentrations exceeding 350 g l−1 (see, e.g., Rodriguez-Valera et al. 1981; Oren 1993; Litchfield et al. 2000). Many of the halophilic and halotolerant microorganisms in culture have been isolated from such salterns, and considerable efforts have been devoted toward the understanding of the microbial transformations in the water and the sediments of saltern evaporation and crystallizer ponds (Javor 1989; Oren 1993).