Phylogenetic heterogeneity of the species Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans.

Polyphasic genotypic analysis of 25 Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans strains isolated from ores and ore concentrates collected in different regions of the world showed considerable strain heterogeneity. Restriction patterns of the chromosomal DNA of these strains obtained by PFGE were specific for each strain. According to the degree of DNA relatedness, 17 of the 23 strains studied were divided into four genomovars.