Putative transposases conserved in Exiguobacterium isolates from ancient Siberian permafrost and from contemporary surface habitats.

ABSTRACT: Gram-positive bacteria of the genus Exiguobacterium have been repeatedly isolated from Siberian permafrost ranging in age from 20,000 to 2 to 3 million years and have been sporadically recovered from markedly diverse habitats, including microbial mats in Lake Fryxell (Antarctic), surface water, and food-processing environments. However, there is currently no information on genomic diversity of this microorganism or on the physiological strategies that have allowed its survival under prolonged freezing in the permafrost. Analysis of the genome sequence of the most ancient available Exiguobacterium isolate (Exiguobacterium sp. strain 255-15, from 2 to 3 million-year-old Siberian permafrost) revealed numerous putative transposase sequences, primarily of the IS200/IS605, IS30, and IS3 families

SUBMITTER: Vishnivetskaya TA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1287632 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature