''Halanaerobium praevalens'' is a moderately

alkaliphilic Alkaliphiles are a class of extremophilic microbes capable of survival in alkaline ( pH roughly 8.5–11) environments, growing optimally around a pH of 10. These bacteria can be further categorized as obligate alkaliphiles (those that require high ...

, extremely

halophilic The halophiles, named after the Greek word for "salt-loving", are extremophiles that thrive in high salt concentrations. While most halophiles are classified into the domain Archaea, there are also bacterial halophiles and some eukaryotic species, ...

bacterium that was first isolated from surface sediments of the

Great Salt Lake The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere and the eighth-largest terminal lake in the world. It lies in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah and has a substantial impact upon the local climate, particula ...

, Utah and described by J.G. Zeikus et al. in 1983, with IJSB validation in 1984.

Microbiology

''Halanaerobium praevalens'' is an obligately anaerobic,

Gram-negative Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. They are characterized by their cell envelopes, which are composed of a thin peptidoglycan cell wall ...

, non-motile, non-sporulating, straight rod-shaped bacterium. The Great Salt Lake it was first isolated from is hypersaline, with surface sediments at >20% NaCl. The bacterium grows best at a concentration of ~13% NaCl, with no significant growth at <2% or ≥30%. The pH range for growth is between 6.0 and 9.0, with an optimum between 7.0 and 7.4. Temperature range for growth is >5°C and <60°C, with an optimum at 37ºC.

Genome

As of 2011, ''H. praevalenss

genome In the fields of molecular biology and genetics, a genome is all the genetic information of an organism. It consists of nucleotide sequences of DNA (or RNA in RNA viruses). The nuclear genome includes protein-coding genes and non-coding ge ...

has been completely sequenced, utilizing the Illumina and

454 Year 454 ( CDLIV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aetius and Studius (or, less frequently, year 1207 '' Ab urbe condi ...

gene-sequencing platforms. The genome is 2,309,262 bp long, with 2,110

protein-coding The coding region of a gene, also known as the coding sequence (CDS), is the portion of a gene's DNA or RNA that codes for protein. Studying the length, composition, regulation, splicing, structures, and functions of coding regions compared to no ...

, and 70

RNA Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is a polymeric molecule essential in various biological roles in coding, decoding, regulation and expression of genes. RNA and deoxyribonucleic acid ( DNA) are nucleic acids. Along with lipids, proteins, and carbohydra ...

genes. The bacterium's closest relative within ''Halanaerobium'' is thought to be ''H. alcaliphilum''.

Applications

''H. praevalens'' is of interest for bioremediation purposes, thanks to its ability to degrade organic pollutants. It is able to quickly reduce a variety of nitro-substituted

aromatic In chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property of cyclic ( ring-shaped), ''typically'' planar (flat) molecular structures with pi bonds in resonance (those containing delocalized electrons) that gives increased stability compared to satur ...

compounds, and has been shown to be involved in

carbon sequestration Carbon sequestration is the process of storing carbon in a carbon pool. Carbon dioxide () is naturally captured from the atmosphere through biological, chemical, and physical processes. These changes can be accelerated through changes in land ...

in the Great Salt Lake. This

chemoorganotroph Primary nutritional groups are groups of organisms, divided in relation to the nutrition mode according to the sources of energy and carbon, needed for living, growth and reproduction. The sources of energy can be light or chemical compounds; the ...

also functions hydrolytically, fermenting complex organic matter, and producing intermediary metabolites for other trophic groups, including sulfate-reducing and

methanogenic Methanogenesis or biomethanation is the formation of methane coupled to energy conservation by microbes known as methanogens. Organisms capable of producing methane for energy conservation have been identified only from the Domain (biology), domai ...

bacteria. ''H. praevalens'' is among the bacteria which are responsible for the fermentation of the Baltic Sea herring used to make the pungent Swedish delicacy

surströmming Surströmming (; ) is lightly salted fermented Baltic Sea herring traditional to Swedish cuisine since at least the 16th century. Surströmming or fermented herring should not be confused with the common dish fried herring or typically preserve ...

References

{{taxonbar , from=Q3782529 Halanaerobiales Bacteria described in 1983

Microbiology

Genome

Applications

See also

References