title: Transport genes of Chromobacterium violaceum: an overview.
abstract: The complete genome sequence of the free-living bacterium Chromobacterium violaceum has been determined by a consortium of laboratories in Brazil. Almost 500 open reading frames (ORFs) coding for transport-related membrane proteins were identified in C. violaceum, which represents 11% of all genes found. The main class of transporter proteins is the primary active transporters (212 ORFs), followed by electrochemical potential-driven transporters (154 ORFs) and channels/pores (62 ORFs). Other classes (61 ORFs) include group translocators, transport electron carriers, accessory factors, and incompletely characterized systems. Therefore, all major categories of transport-related membrane proteins currently recognized in the Transport Protein Database (http://tcdb.ucsd.edu/tcdb) are present in C. violaceum. The complex apparatus of transporters of C. violaceum is certainly an important factor that makes this bacterium a dominant microorganism in a variety of ecosystems in tropical and subtropical regions. From a biotechnological point of view, the most important finding is the transporters of heavy metals, which could lead to the exploitation of C. violaceum for bioremediation.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Citogenética e Genética Molecular, Departamento de Biologia, Bloco 906, Campus do Pici, Universidade Federal do Ceará, Av. Humberto Monte, s/n, 60451-970 Fortaleza, CE, Brasil. thalles@ufc.br
authors.forename: Thalles Barbosa
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Grangeiro
authors.forename: Daniel Macedo de Melo
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Jorge
authors.forename: Walderly Melgaço
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Bezerra
authors.forename: Ana Tereza Ribeiro
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Vasconcelos
authors.forename: Andrew John George
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Simpson
mesh_terms: D001692:Biological Transport / Q000235:genetics; D002861:Chromobacterium / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D016366:Open Reading Frames / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins