Query: NC_014034:1507047 Rhodobacter capsulatus SB1003 chromosome, complete genome Lineage: Rhodobacter capsulatus; Rhodobacter; Rhodobacteraceae; Rhodobacterales; Proteobacteria; Bacteria General Information: This strain is a derivative strain isolated in the laboratory of Barry Marrs from the classical progenitor strain B10. It is rifampicin-resistant, produces GTA, and is capable of growing under high illumination (resistant to photooxidative killing). Bacteria belonging to the Rhodobacter group are metabolically versatile as they are able to use photosynthesis and usually can grow under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions. This organism is a facultatively phototrophic purple non-sulfur bacterium and the type species of the Rhodobacter group. The colony's color depends largely on the amount of oxygen present in its environment. While it is able to produce cellular energy in a number of different ways, it can rely on anoxygenic photosynthesis under anaerobic conditions in the presence of light. Some strains produce the Gene Transfer Element (GTA), a pro-phage particle capable of transferring genetic material between strains.
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General Information: Clostridium botulinum A3 str. Loch Maree was isolated from duck liver paste during a botulism outbreak at a hotel in the Scottish highlands in 1922. This was the first and worst outbreak of botulism in the United Kingdom (UK). 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.