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Bacterial Endosymbionts of Free‐living Amoebae 1
Author(s) -
HORN MATTHIAS,
WAGNER MICHAEL
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of eukaryotic microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.067
H-Index - 77
eISSN - 1550-7408
pISSN - 1066-5234
DOI - 10.1111/j.1550-7408.2004.tb00278.x
Subject(s) - biology , chlamydiae , obligate , acanthamoeba , proteobacteria , 16s ribosomal rna , phylogenetic tree , amoeba (genus) , genome , microbiology and biotechnology , protozoa , ribosomal rna , genetics , endosymbiosis , gene , bacteria , ecology , plastid , chloroplast
The occurrence of bacterial endosymbionts in free‐living amoebae has been known for decades, but their obligate intracellular lifestyle hampered their identification. Application of the full cycle rRNA approach, including 16S rRNA gene sequencing and fluorescence in‐situ hybridization with 16S rRNA‐targeted oligonucleotide probes, assigned the symbionts of Acanthamoeba spp. and Hartmannella sp. to five different evolutionary lineages within the Proteobacteria , the Bacteroidetes , and the Chlamydiae , respectively. Some of these bacterial symbionts are most closely related to bacterial pathogens of humans, and it has been suggested that they should be considered potential emerging pathogens. Complete genome sequence analysis of a chlamydia‐related symbiont of Acanthamoeba sp. showed that this endosymbiont uses similar mechanisms for interaction with its eukaryotic host cell as do the well‐known bacterial pathogens of humans. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis suggested that these mechanisms have been evolved by the ancestor of these amoeba symbionts in interplay with ancient unicellular eukaryotes.