Pre_GI: SWBIT SVG BLASTN

Query: NC_001263:2236777 Deinococcus radiodurans R1 chromosome 1, complete sequence

Lineage: Deinococcus radiodurans; Deinococcus; Deinococcaceae; Deinococcales; Deinococcus-Thermus; Bacteria

General Information: This red-pigmented organism's name means "strange berry that withstands radiation", marking the fact that this organism is one of the most radiation-resistant known. It can tolerate radiation levels at 1000 times the levels that would kill a human and it was originally isolated in 1956 from a can of meat that had been irradiated with X-rays. The resistance to radiation may reflect its resistance to dessication, which also causes DNA damage. This organism may be of use in cleaning up toxic metals found at nuclear weapons production sites due to the radiation resistance. This bacterium is also a highly efficient transformer, and can readily take up exogenous DNA from the environment, which may also aid DNA repair. This organism carries multiple copies of many DNA repair genes, suggesting a robust system for dealing with DNA damage. The recombination system may rely on multiple copies of various repeat elements found throughout the genome.

Subject: NC_009085:131000 Acinetobacter baumannii ATCC 17978, complete genome

Lineage: Acinetobacter baumannii; Acinetobacter; Moraxellaceae; Pseudomonadales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria

General Information: Isolated from a case of meningitis. Causes opportunistic infections in hospitals. This bacterium is commonly isolated from the hospital environment and hospitalized patients. It is an aquatic organism, and is often cultured from liquid medical samples such as respiratory secretions, wounds, and urine. Acinetobacter also colonizes irrigating solutions and intravenous solutions. Although it has low virulence, it is capable of causing infection. Most isolates recovered from patients represent colonization rather than infection. When infections do occur, they usually occur in the blood, or in organs with a high fluid content, such as the lungs or urinary tract. Infections by this organism are becoming increasingly problematic due to the high number of resistance genes found in clinical isolates. Some strains are now resistant to all known antibiotics. Most of these genes appear to have been transferred horizontally from other organisms.