NC_008820:1543347 Prochlorococcus marinus str. MIT 9303, complete genome
Host Lineage: Prochlorococcus marinus; Prochlorococcus; Prochlorococcaceae; Prochlorales; Cyanobacteria; Bacteria
General Information: This strain was collected from the Sargasso Sea at a depth of 100 m and was isolated by filter fractionation. It can grow only in a narrow range of light intensities. This strain belongs to the 'low light-adapted' ecotype, clade IV, and has a high Chl b/a2 ratio. Marine cyanobacterium. This non-motile bacterium is a free-living marine organism that is one of the most abundant, as well as the smallest, on earth, and contributes heavily to carbon cycling in the marine environment. This cyanobacterium grows in areas of nitrogen and phosphorus limitation and is unique in that it utilizes divinyl chlorophyll a/b proteins as light-harvesting systems instead of phycobiliproteins. These pigments allow harvesting of light energy from blue wavelengths at low light intensity.