General Information: Phytoplasmas inhabit phloem (food-conducting vascular tissue) sieve elements of plants where they cause a variety of diseases. Transmission between plants is via insects that feed on the phloem. Candidatus Phytoplasma australiense was identified in diseased Chardonnay grapevines from South Australia. Symptoms include a yellowing of the leaves and reduced leaf size, which leads to reduced plant size and lower yields.
- Sequence; - BLASTP hit: hover for score (Low score = Light, High score = Dark); - hypothetical protein; - cds: hover for description
General Information: This organism, like other myxobacteria, undergoes a complex development and differentiation pathway. When cell density increases, the organism switches to "social motility" where aggregates of cells can gather together into masses termed fruiting bodies that may consist of up to 100 000 cells. The motility system is not dependent on flagella like most bacteria, but instead relies on twitching pili: short extracellular appendages that may function analogously to oars in a rowboat. The myxobacteria have proved to be a rich source of novel natural products. Myxococcus fulvus produces a number of antibacterial, antifungal and cytotoxic substances which are being studies for therapeutic applications.