Aquifex aeolicus
| Aquificeae | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Aquificae |
| Class: | Aquificae |
| Order: | Aquificales |
| Family: | Aquificaceae |
| Genus: | Aquifex |
| Species: | A. aeolicus |
| Binomial name | |
| Aquifex aeolicus Huber and Stetter, 1992 |
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (February 2012) |
Aquifex aeolicus is a rod-shaped prokaryote with a length of 2 to 6 micrometers and a diameter of around half a micrometer. It is one of a handful of species in the Aquificae phylum, an unusual group of thermophilic bacteria that are thought to be some of the oldest species of bacteria.
A. aeolicus grows best in water between 85 to 95 °C, and can be found near underwater volcanoes or hot springs. It requires oxygen to survive (though it can grow in levels of oxygen as low as 7.5 ppm), and its method of respiration produces water as a byproduct. ("Aquifex" means "water-maker.") Members of the species tend to form large cell conglomerations, of up to 100 individual cells. It was discovered around islands north of Sicily.
The genome of A. aeolicus has been successfully mapped. This was made easier by the fact that the length of the genome is only about a third of the length of the genome for E. coli. Comparison of the Aquifex aeolicus genome to other organisms showed that around 16% of its genes originated from the Archaea domain. It has the smallest genome of any known non-parasite. Its total genome is 1.5 Mb long and contains 1512 genes.
The "A. aeolicus" is also known as one of the few bacterial species capable of doing gene silencing.
[edit] External links and references
- Huber, Robert; Swanson, Ronald V.; Deckert, Gerard; Warren, Patrick V.; Gaasterland, Terry; Young, William G.; Lenox, Anna L.; Graham, David E. et al (1998). "The complete genome of the hyperthermophilic bacterium Aquifex aeolicus". Nature 392 (6674): 353–8. doi:10.1038/32831. PMID 9537320.
- http://cmr.jcvi.org/tigr-scripts/CMR/GenomePage.cgi?database=ntaa01[dead link] Aquifex aeolicus VF5 Genome Page
- Rashid, U. J.; Paterok, D.; Koglin, A.; Gohlke, H.; Piehler, J.; Chen, J. C.-H. (2007). "Structure of Aquifex aeolicus Argonaute Highlights Conformational Flexibility of the PAZ Domain as a Potential Regulator of RNA-induced Silencing Complex Function". Journal of Biological Chemistry 282 (18): 13824–32. doi:10.1074/jbc.M608619200. PMID 17130125.
