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An Introduction to the Family Clostridiaceae

  • SECTION 1.2 Firmicutes with Low GC Content of DNA
  • Reference work entry
The Prokaryotes

Introduction

The pre-16S rRNA sequence definition of the genus Clostridium was—non-sulfate-reducing sporeformer relying obligately on anaerobic energy metabolism and with a Gram-positive type cell wall (Hippe et al., 1992). Our view of bacterial classification has greatly changed in the past 10 years. We now define the overall taxonomic structure of the prokaryotes, for the most part, on the basis of relationships revealed by comparison of 16S rRNA gene sequences. This has lead to transferring many former clostridial species to novel genera and to a more narrow definition of the genus Clostridium (further referred to as Clostridium sensu stricto), encompassing much fewer species but including the majority of the medically important species.

Phylogeny

The recent release of the second edition of Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriologytakes the bold step of proposing a taxonomic structure for all validly described prokaryotes on the basis of a 16S rRNA gene sequence phylogeny. This...

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Authors
  1. Juergen Wiegel
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  2. Ralph Tanner
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  3. Fred A. Rainey
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota, Box 196, Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455-0312, USA

    Martin Dworkin Professor Dr. (Editor-in-Chief) (Editor-in-Chief)

  2. Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University Medical School, 299 Campus Drive, Fairchild, D039, Stanford, CA, 94305-5124, USA

    Stanley Falkow

  3. Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, Tel Aviv University, Ramat-Aviv, 69978, Israel

    Eugene Rosenberg

  4. Department of Microbiology, Technical University Munich, 80290, Munich, Germany

    Karl-Heinz Schleifer

  5. DSMZ- German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures GmbH, Mascheroder Weg 1b, 38124, Braunschweig, Germany

    Erko Stackebrandt

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Wiegel, J., Tanner, R., Rainey, F.A. (2006). An Introduction to the Family Clostridiaceae. In: Dworkin, M., Falkow, S., Rosenberg, E., Schleifer, KH., Stackebrandt, E. (eds) The Prokaryotes. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30744-3_20

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