''Magnetospirillum'' is a
Gram-negative,
microaerophilic
A microaerophile is a microorganism that requires environments containing lower levels of dioxygen than that are present in the atmosphere (i.e. < 21% O2; typically 2–10% O2) for optimal growth.[ A more re ...]
genus of
magnetotactic bacterium, first isolated from pond water by the
microbiologist R. P. Blakemore in 1975.
[
] They have a
spiral (helical) shape and are propelled by a polar
flagellum at each end of their cells. Four species have been described: ''M. magnetotacticum'' strain MS-1 (originally classified as ''Aquaspirillum magnetotacticum''; ''M. magneticum'' strain AMB-1; ''M. gryphiswaldense'' and ''M. bellicus''.
Habitat
The typical
habitat of ''Magnetospirillum'' species consists of shallow fresh water and sediments, characterized by low concentrations of
oxygen for growth (microaerophilic) where they live in the upper portion of the sediment (
oxic
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