''Sulfobacillus'' is a
genus of
bacteria containing six named
species. Members of the genus are
Gram-positive,
acidophilic
Acidophiles or acidophilic organisms are those that thrive under highly acidic conditions (usually at pH 5.0 or below). These organisms can be found in different branches of the tree of life, including Archaea, Bacteria,Becker, A.Types of Bacteria ...
,
spore-forming bacteria that are moderately
thermophilic or thermotolerant. All species are
facultative anaerobes capable of
oxidizing sulfur
Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...
-containing compounds; they differ in optimal growth temperature and metabolic capacity, particularly in their ability to grow on various
organic carbon compounds.
Ecology
''Sulfobacillus'' species are found globally in both natural and artificial
acidic environments, such as
hot springs,
solfatara environments,
hydrothermal vent
A hydrothermal vent is a fissure on the seabed from which geothermally heated water discharges. They are commonly found near volcanically active places, areas where tectonic plates are moving apart at mid-ocean ridges, ocean basins, and hotspot ...
s, and in various forms of
acid mine drainage. Compared to other bacterial species found in similar acidic environments, ''Sulfobacillus'' species are often present at relatively low abundance.
Genome
The
genomes of several ''Sulfobacillus'' species have been
sequenced.
Differences between members include genome size and gene content related to sulfur oxidation pathways.
Taxonomy
''Sulfobacillus'' was first described in 1978, along with the
type species, ''
Sulfobacillus thermosulfidooxidans''.
Five additional species have since been described, in at least one case discovered after samples believed to be ''S. thermosulfidooxidans'' showed unexpected characteristics.
The genus is of uncertain taxonomic position. It was originally placed in the
Clostridiales. It is likely related to the genus ''
Thermaerobacter'' and may represent either a deep branch of the ''
Bacillota'' or a separate
phylum
In biology, a phylum (; plural: phyla) is a level of classification or taxonomic rank below kingdom and above class. Traditionally, in botany the term division has been used instead of phylum, although the International Code of Nomenclature f ...
.
Phylogeny
See also
*
List of bacterial orders
This article lists the orders of the Bacteria. The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)
and the phylogeny is based on 16S ...
*
List of bacteria genera This article lists the genera of the bacteria. The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). However many taxonomic names are ...
References
Acidophiles
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