Query: NC_011420:3650724 Rhodospirillum centenum SW, complete genome
Lineage: Rhodospirillum centenum; Rhodospirillum; Rhodospirillaceae; Rhodospirillales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria
General Information: Rhodospirillum centenum, also called Rhodocista centenaria, is a nitrogen-fixing photoheterotroph with a complex life cycle. R. centenum is one of the few known thermotolerant purple bacteria species with optimal growth temperature of 44 dgrees C and a maximal growth temperature of 48 degrees C. In liquid media this organism is motile by a single polar flagellum. R. centenum produces lateral flagella to become a swarming cell. Under low nutrient conditions R. centenum forms a desiccation- and UV-resistant cyst. R. centenum can often be cultivated from hot springs such as those found at Yellowstone National Park. R. centenum is emerging as a model organism for genetic and molecular genetic analysis of cyst formation.
Subject: NC_003103:266013 Rickettsia conorii str. Malish 7, complete genome
Lineage: Rickettsia conorii; Rickettsia; Rickettsiaceae; Rickettsiales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria
General Information: This strain was isolated from a human in South Africa. Causative agent for Rocky Mountain spotted fever. This genus, like other Rickettsial organisms such as Neorickettsia and Anaplasma, is composed of obligate intracellular pathogens. The latter is composed of two organisms, Rickettsia prowazekii and Rickettsia typhi. The bacteria are transmitted via an insect, usually a tick, to a host organism, in this case humans, where they target endothelial cells and sometimes macrophages. They attach via an adhesin, rickettsial outer membrane protein A, and are internalized where they persist as cytoplasmically free organisms. Transovarial transmission (from mother to offspring) occurs in the invertebrate host. This organism causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever which can cause severe damage to the endothelial layer of major organs, including the lungs, heart, kidneys, and skeletal muscle which can result in death.