The Ravel Laboratory for Microbial Genomics
Whole genome sequencing of Bacillus megaterium
Collaborators: Patricia Vary, Northern Illinois University and David Rasko, UT Southwestern at Dallas.
Funding: NSF
Bacillus megaterium, is a Gram-positive bacterium that is found worldwide in a variety of habitats. This important organism has been extensively studied since the 1940’s as it is one of the only species to have 100% of a culture to sporulate. B. megaterium spores have also the ability to germinate synchronously. More impressively, B. megaterium has a cell volume that is 100 times greater than Escherichia coli. This is a unique feature that has allowed for detailed protein localization studies as well as extensive analysis of the cell membrane. Phylogenetically, B. megaterium is deeply rooted within the Bacilli, making it a key organism in the evolutionary history of the group. Comparative and phylogenomic analysis of the genome sequence of B. megaterium combined with other existing Bacillus genomes will bring our understanding of the physiology, evolution and ecology of this group to an unprecedented level. On the applied side, B. megaterium is widely used in industry, as it is a well-recognized expression host for proteins and protein complexes. In this project, we propose to sequence, close and annotate the complete genome sequence of B. megaterium QM1551, a bacterium with numerous unique features that separate it from its closest relatives. B. megaterium QM1551 has seven plasmids, the largest number of extrachromosomal elements in the group, which may possibly be an important factor in gene flow and speciation in sympatric soil Bacilli. This project will not only influence current work, but also is likely to stimulate new areas of research.
The project web-site at NIU is here.
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