Complete genome of the mutualistic, N2-fixing grass endophyte Azoarcus sp. strain BH72.
Azoarcus sp. strain BH72, a mutualistic endophyte of rice and other grasses, is of agrobiotechnological interest because it supplies biologically fixed nitrogen to its host and colonizes plants in remarkably high numbers without eliciting disease symptoms. The complete genome sequence is 4,376,040-bp long and contains 3,992 predicted protein-coding sequences. Genome comparison with the Azoarcus-related soil bacterium strain EbN1 revealed a surprisingly low degree of synteny. Coding sequences involved in the synthesis of surface components potentially important for plant-microbe interactions were more closely related to those of plant-associated bacteria. Strain BH72 appears to be 'disarmed' compared to plant pathogens, having only a few enzymes that degrade plant cell walls; it lacks type III and IV secretion systems, related toxins and an N-acyl homoserine lactones-based communication system. The genome contains remarkably few mobile elements, indicating a low rate of recent gene transfer that is presumably due to adaptation to a stable, low-stress microenvironment.
Krause
Andrea
A
Laboratory of General Microbiology, University of Bremen, PO Box 330440, D-28334 Bremen, Germany.
Ramakumar
Adarsh
A
Bartels
Daniela
D
Battistoni
Federico
F
Bekel
Thomas
T
Boch
Jens
J
Böhm
Melanie
M
Friedrich
Frauke
F
Hurek
Thomas
T
Krause
Lutz
L
Linke
Burkhard
B
McHardy
Alice C
AC
Sarkar
Abhijit
A
Schneiker
Susanne
S
Syed
Arshad Ali
AA
Thauer
Rudolf
R
Vorhölter
Frank-Jörg
FJ
Weidner
Stefan
S
Pühler
Alfred
A
Reinhold-Hurek
Barbara
B
Kaiser
Olaf
O
Goesmann
Alexander
A
D020627:Azoarcus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D002244:Carbon / Q000378:metabolism; D016680:Genome, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D015698:Genomic Library; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D005810:Multigene Family / Q000235:genetics*; D009586:Nitrogen Fixation / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D012275:Oryza / Q000382:microbiology; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000382:microbiology; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000379:methods; D013559:Symbiosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology
D002244:Carbon; D007501:Iron