Characterization of bacterial community structure in a hydrocarbon-contaminated tropical African soil.

The bacterial community structure in a hydrocarbon-contaminated Mechanical Engineering Workshop (MWO) soil was deciphered using 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis. Four hundred and thirty-seven clones cutting across 13 bacterial phyla were recovered from the soil. The representative bacterial phyla identified from MWO soil are Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Planctomycetes, Ignavibacteriae, Spirochaetes, Chlamydiae, Candidatus Saccharibacteria and Parcubacteria.

Complete Genome Sequence of a Dimethyl Sulfide-Utilizing Bacterium, Acinetobacter guillouiae Strain 20B (NBRC 110550).

Acinetobacter guillouiae strain 20B can utilize dimethyl sulfide (DMS) as the sole sulfur source and degrade chloroethylenes. We report here the complete 4,648,418-bp genome sequence for this strain, which contains 4,367 predicted coding sequences (CDSs), including a well-characterized DMS degradative operon.

SP10 infectivity is aborted after bacteriophage SP10 infection induces nonA transcription on the prophage SPβ region of the Bacillus subtilis genome.

Bacteria have developed various strategies for phage resistance. Infection with phage induces the transcription of part of the phage resistance gene, but the regulatory mechanisms of such transcription remain largely unknown. The phage resistance gene nonA is located on the SPβ prophage region of the Bacillus subtilis Marburg strain genome.

Heterologous expression of the Oceanobacillus iheyensis SigW and its anti-protein RsiW in Bacillus subtilis.

Pairs of the ECF sigma factor and its anti-sigma factor, SigW and RsiW, of Bacillus-related species that inhabit extreme environments were heterologously expressed in B. subtilis. All the RsiWs, membrane proteins, failed to fill their function of repressing cognate SigW activity, despite their close structural similarities.

The genome of Bacillus subtilis phage SP10: a comparative analysis with phage SPO1.

A nucleotide sequence of the whole genome of Bacillus subtilis phage SP10 was determined. It was composed of 143,986 bp with 236 putative open reading frames (ORFs). Sixty-five of 236 predicted ORFs showed high similarity to that of SPO1, and the genome organizations of the two phages were similar to each other.

Inhibitory effect of prophage SPβ fragments on phage SP10 ribonucleotide reductase function and its multiplication in Bacillus subtilis.

Bacteria have evolved various kinds of defense mechanisms against phage infection and multiplication. Analysis of these mechanisms is important for medical and industrial application of phages as well as for their scientific study. Strains of Bacillus subtilis Marburg strain carrying both nonA and nonB mutations are susceptible to the Bacillus phage SP10.

Glucomannan utilization operon of Bacillus subtilis.

This study characterizes the glucomannan utilization operon (gmuBACDREFG, formerly ydhMNOPQRST) of Bacillus subtilis. Transcription of the operon is induced by konjac glucomannan and requires the last mannanase gene (gmuG). Cellobiose and mannobiose, possible degradation products of glucomannan by GmuG, are strong inducers of transcription.