In
taxonomy
Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification.
A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...
, ''Haloferax'' (common abbreviation: ''Hfx.'') is a genus of the
Haloferacaceae
''Haloferacaceae'' is a family of halophilic, chemoorganotrophic or heterotrophic archaea within the order ''Haloferacales.'' The type genus of this family is ''Haloferax.'' Its biochemical characteristics are the same as the order ''Haloferacale ...
.
Genetic exchange
Cells of ''H. mediterranei'' and cells of the related species ''
H. volcanii'' can undergo a process of genetic exchange between two cells which involves cell fusion resulting in a heterodiploid cell (containing two different chromosomes in one cell).
Although this genetic exchange ordinarily occurs between two cells of the same species, it can also occur at a lower frequency between an ''H. mediterranei'' and an ''H. volcani'' cell. These two species have an average nucleotide sequence identity of 86.6%.
During this exchange process, a diploid cell is formed that contains the full genetic repertoire of both parental cells, and genetic recombination is facilitated. Subsequently, the cells separate, giving rise to recombinant cells.
Taxonomy
As of 2022, 13 species are validly published under the genus ''Haloferax''.
;Proposed species
Several species and novel binomial names have been proposed, but not validly published.
* ''Haloferax antrum'',
''Haloferax opilio'', ''Haloferax rutilus'' and ''Haloferax viridis'' were isolated from
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
n salt lakes and first proposed as new species in 2006.
Only ''
H. prahovense'', that was proposed along them has since been validly published.
* ''Haloferax berberensis'' was isolated in
Algeria
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and proposed as new species in 2005.
* ''Haloferax litoreum'', ''Haloferax marinisediminis'' and ''Haloferax marinum'' were first published in 2021, but are not accepted as of 2022.
* ''Haloferax marisrubri'' and ''Haloferax profundi'' were first published in 2020, but is not accepted as of 2022.
* ''Haloferax massilisiensis'' or ''Haloferax massiliense'' was first published in 2016 and again in 2018 as human associated halophilic archaeon. As of 2022, this species is not accepted.
See also
*
Archaea
Archaea ( ; singular archaeon ) is a domain of single-celled organisms. These microorganisms lack cell nuclei and are therefore prokaryotes. Archaea were initially classified as bacteria, receiving the name archaebacteria (in the Archaebac ...
*
Homologous recombination
Homologous recombination is a type of genetic recombination in which genetic information is exchanged between two similar or identical molecules of double-stranded or single-stranded nucleic acids (usually DNA as in cellular organisms but may ...
*
Extremophile
An extremophile (from Latin ' meaning "extreme" and Greek ' () meaning "love") is an organism that is able to live (or in some cases thrive) in extreme environments, i.e. environments that make survival challenging such as due to extreme temper ...
References
Further reading
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External links
''Haloferax'' at Bac''Dive'' - the Bacterial Diversity MetadatabaseNCBI Taxonomy browser
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3126194
Archaea genera
Taxa described in 1986