HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by JOHNSON, J. L. Articles by CHEN, J.-S. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by JOHNSON, J. L. Articles by CHEN, J.-S. Agricola Articles by JOHNSON, J. L. Articles by CHEN, J.-S.

Cultures of "Clostridium acetobutylicum" from Various Collections Comprise Clostridium acetobutylicum, Clostridium beijerinckii, and Two Other Distinct Types Based on DNA-DNA Reassociation

J. L. JOHNSON, J. TOTH, S. SANTIWATANAKUL and J.-S. CHEN^*

Department of Biochemistry and Anaerobic Microbiology. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061–0308

^* Corresponding author. Phone: (540) 231-7129 E-mail: CHENJS{at}VT.EDU.

ABSTRACT

The best-known acetone-butanol (solvent)-producing bacterium is the Weizmann organism, Clostridium acetobutylicum, which was used for starch-based industrial fermentation. In the past two decades, cultures of "C, acetobutylicum" from various culture collections have included organisms that were isolated for sugar (molusses)-based industrial solvent production. Recent biochemical and genetic studies have revealed significant differences among some of these "C. acetobutylicum" strains. We used DNA-DNA reassociation to analyze 39 cultures of "C. acetobutylicum" and phenotypically similar organisms from major collections. The results of this study clearly identified four groups with intergroup reassociation values of less than 30%. All of the intragroup values except the value for one strain were 68% or more, which supported species status for each group. The C. acetobutylicum group (with ATCC 824 as the type strain) consisted of 17 cultures and had average reassociation values of 10% with the other three groups. All strains of C. acetobutylicum produced riboflavin in milk, and the cultures were bright yellow, which is useful for differentiating this species from the other three uroups. The Clostridium beijerinckii group (with VPI 5481 [= ATCC 25752] as the type strain) consisted of 16 cultures and included strains NCIMB 8052 and NCP 270. Strains NCP 262 and NRRL B643 constituted the third group, whereas strain N1–4 ("Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum") and its derivative, strain N1-4081, formed the fourth group. At present, the last two groups are each represented by only one independent strain; difinitive descriptions of these two groups as two new or revived species will require further phenotypic characterization, as well as identification of additional strains. C. beijerinckii NCP 270, Clostridium sp. strain NRRL B643, and "C. saccharoperbutylacetonicum" were used in industrial solvent production from molasses, which confirms that the new organisms used for the sugar-based processes are distinct from C. acetobutylicum.

Present address: Department of Biology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State university, Blacksburg, VA 24061.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				L. M. Harris, N. E. Welker, and E. T. Papoutsakis Northern, Morphological, and Fermentation Analysis of spo0A Inactivation and Overexpression in Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 J. Bacteriol., July 1, 2002; 184(13): 3586 - 3597. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Keis, J. T. Sullivan, and D. T. Jones Physical and genetic map of the Clostridium saccharobutylicum (formerly Clostridium acetobutylicum) NCP 262 chromosome Microbiology, July 1, 2001; 147(7): 1909 - 1922. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Behrens, W. J. Mitchell, and H. Bahl Molecular analysis of the mannitol operon of Clostridium acetobutylicum encoding a phosphotransferase system and a putative PTS-modulated regulator Microbiology, January 1, 2001; 147(1): 75 - 86. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				J. Toth, A. A. Ismaiel, and J.-S. Chen The ald Gene, Encoding a Coenzyme A-Acylating Aldehyde Dehydrogenase, Distinguishes Clostridium beijerinckii and Two Other Solvent-Producing Clostridia from Clostridium acetobutylicum Appl. Envir. Microbiol., November 1, 1999; 65(11): 4973 - 4980. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				R. P. Desai and E. T. Papoutsakis Antisense RNA Strategies for Metabolic Engineering of Clostridium acetobutylicum Appl. Envir. Microbiol., March 1, 1999; 65(3): 936 - 945. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				C.-K. Chen and H. P. Blaschek Effect of Acetate on Molecular and Physiological Aspects of Clostridium beijerinckii NCIMB 8052 Solvent Production and Strain Degeneration Appl. Envir. Microbiol., February 1, 1999; 65(2): 499 - 505. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				R. V. Nair, E. M. Green, D. E. Watson, G. N. Bennett, and E. T. Papoutsakis Regulation of the sol Locus Genes for Butanol and Acetone Formation in Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 by a Putative Transcriptional Repressor J. Bacteriol., January 1, 1999; 181(1): 319 - 330. [Abstract] [Full Text]