Abstract
A flexing and gliding green sulfur bacterium has been isolated from marine sources off the North East coast of the USA. Chloroherpeton thalassium is an obligate phototroph, and requires CO2 and S2- for growth; some organic acids can contribute to cell carbon, and N2 may be fixed. The cells contain typical chlorosomes, and gas vesicles may be present. Bacteriochlorophyll c is the main light harvesting pigment, and a small quantity of bacteriochlorophyll a is also present. Over 80% of the carotenoid is γ-carotene. DNA base composition of the isolates ranges from 45.0–48.2 mol% G+C.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cohen-Bazire G, Sistrom WR, Stanier RY (1957) Kinetic studies of pigment synthesis by non-sulfur purple bacteria. J Cell Comp Physiol 49:25–35
Dubinina GA, Gorlenko VM (1975) New filamentous photosynthetic green bacteria containing gas vacuoles. Mikrobiologiya 44:452–468
Fox GE, Stackebrandt E, Hespell RB, Gibson J, Maniloff J, Dyer TA, Wolfe RS, Balch WE, Tanner RS, Magrum LJ, Zablen LB, Blakemore R, Gupta R, Bonen L, Lewis BJ, Stahl DA, Luehrsen KR, Chu KN, Woese CR (1980) The phylogeny of prokaryotes. Science 209:357–463
Gibson J (1979) Phylogenetic relationships of photosynthetic bacteria based on 16 S ribosomal RNA catalogues. In: Halvorson HO, van Holde KE (eds) Origin of life and evolution. Alan Liss, New York, pp 97–102
Gorlenko VM (1975) Characteristic filamentous phototrophic bacteria from freshwater lakes. Mikrobiologiya 44:682–684
Gorlenko VM, Pivovarova TA (1977) On the belonging of blue-green alga Oscillatoria coerulescens Gicklhorn 1921 to a new genus of chlorobacteria Oscillochloris Nov. gen. Izvest Akad Nauk SSSR Ser Biol, pp 396–409
Herdman M, Janvier M, Waterbury JB, Rippka R, Stanier RY (1979) Deoxyribonucleic acid base composition of cyanobacteria. J Gen Microbiol 111:63–71
Hoare DS, Gibson J (1964) Photoassimilation of acetate and the biosynthesis of amino acids by Chlorobium thiosulfatophilum. Biochem J 91:546–559
Ihlenfeldt MJA, Gibson J (1977) Acetate uptake by the unicellular cyanobacteria Synechococcus and Aphanocapsa. Arch Microbiol 113:231–241
Jensen A, Aasmundrud O, Eimjhellen KE (1964) Chlorophylls of photosynthetic bacteria. Biochim Biophys Acta 88:466–479
Lowry OH, Rosebrough NJ, Farr AL, Randall RJ (1951) Protein measurement with the Folin phenol reagent. J Biol Chem 193:265–275
Marmur J (1961) A procedure for the isolation of deoxyribonucleic acid from microorganisms. J Mol Biol 3:208–218
Marmur J, Doty P (1963) Determination of the base composition of deoxyribonucleic acid from its thermal denaturation temperature. J Mol Biol 5:109–118
van Niel CB (1932) On the morphology and physiology of the purple and green sulfur bacteria. Arch Mikrobiol 3:2–112
Pfennig N, Lippert K-D (1966) Über das Vitamin-B12-Bedürfnis phototropher Schwefelbakterien. Arch Mikrobiol 55:245–256
Pfennig N, Trüper HG (1974) The phototrophic bacteria. In: Buchanan RE, Gibbons NE (eds) Bergey's manual of determinative bacteriology, 8th ed. Williams and Wilkins, Baltimore, pp 24–75
Pfennig N, Trüper HG (1981) Isolation of members of the families Chromatiacea and Chlorobiacae. In: Starr MP, Stolp H, Trüper HG, Balows A, Schlegel HG (eds) The prokaryotes, vol 1. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 279–289
Pierson BK, Castenholz RW (1974a) A phototrophic gliding filamentous bacterium of hot springs, Chloroflexus aurantiacus gen. and spec. nov. Arch Microbiol 100:5–24
Pierson BK, Castenholz RW (1974b) Studies of pigments and growth in Chloroflexus aurantiacus, a phototrophic filamentous bacterium. Arch Microbiol 100:283–305
Pivovarova TA, Gorlenko VM (1977) Fine structure of Chloroflexus aurantiacus var mesophilus (nom. prof.). Growth in light under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. Mikrobiologiya 46:276–282
Rippka R, Waterbury J, Cohen-Bazire G (1974) A cyanobacterium which lacks thylakoids. Arch Microbiol 100:419–436
Sadler WR, Stanier RY (1960) The function of acetate in photosynthesis by green bacteria. Proc Nat Acad Sci USA 46:1328–1334
Schmidt K (1980) A comparative study on the composition of chlorosomes (Chlorobium vesicles) and cytoplasmic membranes from Chloroflexus aurantiacus strain Ok-70-fl and Chlorobium limicola f. thiosulfatophilum strain 6230. Arch Microbiol 124:21–31
Staehelin LA, Golecki JR, Fuller RC, Drews G (1978) Visualization of the supramolecular architecture of chlorosomes (Chlorobium-type vesicles) in freeze fractured cells of Chloroflexus aurantiacus. Arch Microbiol 119:269–277
Trüper HG (1976) Higher taxa of the phototrophic bacteria: Chloroflexaceae fam. nov., a family for the gliding, filamentous phototrophic “green” bacteria. Int J Syst Bacteriol 26:74–75
Trüper HG, Pfennig N (1978) Taxonomy of the Rhodospirillales. In: The photosynthetic bacteria. Clayton RK, Sistrom WR (eds) The photosynthetic bacteria. Plenum Press, New York, pp 19–27
Walsby AE (1972) Structure and function of gas vacuoles. Bacteriol Rev 36:1–32
Walsby AE (1976) The buoyancy-providing role of gas vacuoles in an aerobic bacterium. Arch Microbiol 109:135–142
Widdel F (1980) Anaerober Abbau von Fettsäuren und Benzoesäure durch neuisolierte Arten Sulfat-reduzierender Bakterien. Diss Univ Göttingen
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
In memory of R. Y. Stanier
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gibson, J., Pfennig, N. & Waterbury, J.B. Chloroherpeton thalassium gen. nov. et spec. nov., a non-filamentous, flexing and gliding green sulfur bacterium. Arch. Microbiol. 138, 96–101 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00413007
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00413007