Query: NC_006831:622906 Ehrlichia ruminantium str. Gardel, complete genome Lineage: Ehrlichia ruminantium; Ehrlichia; Anaplasmataceae; Rickettsiales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria General Information: This strain was isolated from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. Obligate intracellular bacterium and causative agent of heartwater. This organism causes heartwater, a disease with a high mortality rate that affects both wild and domesticated ruminants in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of the Caribbean. The name heartwater refers to the hydropericardium (excessive fluid in the sac surrounding the heart) commonly found associated with infection. This organism is found in membrane-bound vacuoles in endothelial cells and neutrophils and is an obligate intracellular parasite.
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General Information: This organism was first isolated from the soil in Vineland, New Jersey, although it is found worldwide. It is a large obligate aerobe that has one of the highest respiratory rates of any organism. Azotobacter vinelandii also produces a number of unusual nitrogenases which allow it to fix atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia, a compound it can then use as a nitrogen source. It protects the oxygen-sensitive nitrogenase enzymes through its high respiratory rate, which sequesters the nitrogenase complexes in an anoxic environment. This organism has a number of unusual characteristics. Under extreme environmental conditions, the cell will produce a cyst that is resistant to dessication and is surrounded by two capsular polysaccharide layers. This organism produces two industrially important polysaccharides, poly-beta-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) and alginate. PHB is a thermoplastic biopolymer, and alginate is used in the food industry. Alginate is also used by the pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa to infect the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients.