Pre_GI: SWBIT SVG BLASTP

Query: NC_010674:426256 Clostridium botulinum B str. Eklund 17B, complete genome

Lineage: Clostridium botulinum; Clostridium; Clostridiaceae; Clostridiales; Firmicutes; Bacteria

General Information: Clostridium botulinum B str. Eklund 17B is a nonproteolytic botulism neurotoxin B strain. This strain was isolated from marine sediments taken off the coast of Washington, USA and was not associated with botulism. This genus comprises about 150 metabolically diverse species of anaerobes that are ubiquitous in virtually all anoxic habitats where organic compounds are present, including soils, aquatic sediments and the intestinal tracts of animals and humans. This shape is attributed to the presence of endospores that develop under conditions unfavorable for vegetative growth and distend single cells terminally or sub-terminally. Spores germinate under conditions favorable for vegetative growth, such as anaerobiosis and presence of organic substrates. It is believed that present day Mollicutes (Eubacteria) have evolved regressively (i.e., by genome reduction) from gram-positive clostridia-like ancestors with a low GC content in DNA. This organism produces one of the most potent and deadly neurotoxins known, a botulinum toxin that prevents the release of acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction, thereby inhibiting muscle contraction and causing paralysis. In most cases the diseased person dies of asphyxiation as a result of paralysis of chest muscles involved in breathing. The spores are heat-resistant and can survive in inadequately heated, prepared, or processed foods. Spores germinate under favorable conditions (anaerobiosis and substrate-rich environment) and bacteria start propagating very rapidly, producing the toxin.Botulinum toxin, and C. botulinum cells, has been found in a wide variety of foods, including canned ones. Almost any food that has a high pH (above 4.6) can support growth of the bacterium. Honey is the most common vehicle for infection in infants. Food poisoning through C. botulinum is the most frequent type of infection caused by this bacterium. The wound botulism that occurs when C. botulinum infects an individual via an open wound is much rarer and is very similar to tetanus disease. There are several types of botulinum toxin known (type A through type F), all of them being neurotoxic polypeptides. The most common and widely distributed are strains and serovars of C. botulinum that produce type A toxin.

Subject: NC_010725:750911 Methylobacterium populi BJ001, complete genome

Lineage: Methylobacterium populi; Methylobacterium; Methylobacteriaceae; Rhizobiales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria

General Information: This species was isolated from tissue cultures of Populus, the Poplar tree. Colonies are pink to red, and the red pigment is water insoluble. Species of the genus Methylobacterium are strictly aerobic, facultatively methylotrophic, Gram-negative, rod-shaped bacteria that are able to grow on one-carbon compounds (e.g. methanol or methylamine), as well as on a variety of C2, C3 and C4 substrates. Only the type species, Methylobacterium organophilum, has been shown to use methane as the sole source of carbon and energy. Members of the genus are distributed in a wide variety of natural and man-made environments, including soil, air, dust, fresh- and marine water and sediments, water supplies, bathrooms, air-conditioning systems and masonry, and some are opportunistic human pathogens.