Abstract
Specific enrichment culture methods were used to isolate new phototrophic heliobacteria (anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria containing bacteriochlorophyll g) from various natural samples. A survey of terrestrial and aquatic habitats yielded heliobacteria only from soils, in particular rice soils, and from certain hot springs. Thirteen nonthermophilic and 7 thermophilic (capable of growth above 50) strains of heliobacteria were isolated from such habitats and characterized as to their basic cellular and nutritional properties. Phylogenetic studies of four strains showed them to be related to known species of heliobacteria. It is concluded that, unlike phototrophic purple and green bacteria, heliobacteria are primarily (if not exclusively) terrestrial, except for hot spring species. This suggests that the ecology of heliobacteria is fundamentally different from that of other anoxyphototrophs.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Amesz J (1995) The antenna-reaction center complex of heliobacteria. In: Blankenship, RE, Madigan MT and Bauer CE (eds) Anoxygenic Photosynthetic Bacteria, pp 687–697. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Beer-Romero P, Favinger JL and Gest H (1988) Distinctive properties of bacilliform photosynthetic heliobacteria. FEMS Microbiol Lett 49: 451–454
Beer-Romero P and Gest H (1987) Heliobacillus mobilis, a peritrichously flagellated anoxyphototroph containing bacteriochlorophyll g. FEMS Microbiol Lett 41: 109–114
Biebl H and Pfennig N (1982) Isolation of members of the family Rhodospirillaceae. In: Starr MP, Stolp H, Trüper HG, Balows A and Schlegel HG (eds) The Prokaryotes, pp 267–273. Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg/Berlin/New York
Brock TD (1978) Thermophilic Microorganisms and Life at High Temperature. Springer-Verlag, New York
Dorich RA and Nelson DW (1983) Direct colorimetric measurement of ammonium in potassium chloride extracts of soils. Soil Sci Soc Am J 47: 833–836
Gest H and Favinger JL (1983) Heliobacterium chlorum, an anoxygenic brownish-green photosynthetic bacterium containing a 'new' form of bacteriochlorophyll. Arch Microbiol 136: 11–16
Gest H, Favinger JL and Madigan MT (1985) Exploitation of N2-fixation capacity for enrichment of anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria in ecological studies. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 31: 317–322
Habte M and Alexander M (1980) Nitrogen fixation by photosynthetic bacteria in lowland rice culture. Appl Environ Microbiol 39: 342–347
Imhoff JH (1995) Taxonomy and physiology of phototrophic purple bacteria and green sulfur bacteria. In: Blankenship RE, Madigan MT and Bauer CE (eds) Anoxygenic Photosynthetic Bacteria, pp 1–15. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Kimble LK (1995) Characterization of new heliobacteria and nitrogen-fixation studies in the family Heliobacteriaceae. PhD Dissertation. Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL
Kimble LK and Madigan MT (1992) Nitrogen fixation and nitrogen metabolism in heliobacteria. Arch Microbiol 158: 155–161
Kimble LK, Stevenson AK and Madigan MT (1994) Chemotrophic growth of heliobacteria in darkness. FEMS Microbiol Lett 115: 51–56
Kimble LK, Mandeleco L, Woese CR and Madigan MT (1995) Heliobacterium modesticaldum, sp. nov., a thermophilic heliobacterium of hot springs and volcanic soils. Arch Microbiol 163: 259–267
Madigan MT (1988) Microbiology, physiology, and ecology of phototrophic bacteria. In: Zehnder AJB (ed) Ecology of Anaerobic Microorganisms, pp 39–111. John Wiley and Sons, New York
Madigan MT (1992) The family Heliobacteriaceae. In: Balows A, Trüper HG, Dworkin M, Harder W and Schleifer K-H (eds) The Prokaryotes, 2nd ed, pp 1981–1992. Springer-Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg/New York
Madigan MT (1995) Microbiology of nitrogen fixation by anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria. In: Blankenship RE, Madigan MT and Bauer CE (eds) Anoxygenic Photosynthetic Bacteria, pp 915–928. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Madigan MT and Ormerod JG (1995) Taxonomy, physiology and ecology of heliobacteria. In: Blankenship RE, Madigan MT and Bauer CE (eds) Anoxygenic Photosynthetic Bacteria, pp 17–30. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Ormerod JG, Kimble LK, Nesbakken T, Torgersen YA, Woese CR and Madigan MT (1996) Heliophilum fasciatum gen. nov. sp. nov. and Heliobacterium gestii sp. nov.: Endospore-forming heliobacteria from rice field soils. Arch Microbiol 165: 226–234
Ormerod JG, Nesbakken T and Torgersen T (1990) Phototrophic bacteria that form heat resistant endospores. In: Baltscheffsky M (ed) Current Research in Photosynthesis, Vol 4, pp 935–938. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, the Netherlands
Peech M (1965) Hydrogen-ion activity, In: Black CA, Evans DD, White JL, Ensminger LE and Clark FE (eds) Methods of Soil Analysis, pp 914–926. American Society of Agronomy, Inc., Madison, WI
Pfennig, N (1989) Ecology of phototrophic purple and green sulfur bacteria, In: Schlegel HG and Bowien B (eds) Autotrophic Bacteria, pp 97–116. Springer Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg/New York
Pfennig N and Trüper HG (1982) Isolation of members of the families Chromatiaceae and Chlorobiaceae. In: Starr MP, Stolp H, Trüper HG, Balows A and Schlegel HG (eds) The Prokaryotes, pp 279–289. Springer-Verlag, Berlin/Heidelberg/New York
Starynin DA and Gorlenko VM (1993) Sulphide oxidizing sporeforming heliobacteria isolated from a thermal sulfide spring. Microbiology (English translation of Mikrobiologiya) 62: 99–104
Wahlund TM and Madigan MT (1993). Nitrogen fixation by the thermophilic green sulfur bacterium Chlorobium tepidum. J Bacteriol 175: 474–478
Woese CR, Debrunner-Vossbrinck BA, Oyaizu H, Stackebrandt E and Ludwig W (1995) Gram-positive bacteria: Possible photosynthetic ancestry. Science 229: 762–765
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Stevenson, A.K., Kimble, L.K., Woese, C.R. et al. Characterization of new phototrophic heliobacteria and their habitats. Photosynthesis Research 53, 1–12 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005802316419
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005802316419