The FCB is a proposed
superphylum
In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below kingdom and above class. Traditionally, in botany the term division has been used instead of phylum, although the International Code of Nomenclat ...
of
bacteria
Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...
named after the main member phyla
Fibrobacterota
Fibrobacterota is a small bacterial phylum which includes many of the major rumen bacteria, allowing for the degradation of plant-based cellulose in ruminant animals. Members of this phylum were categorized in other phyla. The genus '' Fibrobact ...
,
Chlorobiota, and
Bacteroidota
The phylum (biology), phylum Bacteroidota (synonym Bacteroidetes) is composed of three large classes of Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-negative, nonsporeforming, anaerobic or aerobic, and rod-shaped bacteria that are widely distributed in the envir ...
. The members are considered to form a
clade
In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...
due to a number of
conserved signature indels
Conserved signature inserts and deletions (CSIs) in protein sequences provide an important category of molecular markers for understanding phylogenetic relationships. CSIs, brought about by rare genetic changes, provide useful phylogenetic markers ...
.
Cavalier-Smith
Thomas (Tom) Cavalier-Smith, Royal Society, FRS, Royal Society of Canada, FRSC, Natural Environment Research Council, NERC Professorial Fellow (21 October 1942 – 19 March 2021), was a professor of evolutionary biology in the Departme ...
calls the equivalent grouping a
phylum
In biology, a phylum (; : phyla) is a level of classification, or taxonomic rank, that is below Kingdom (biology), kingdom and above Class (biology), class. Traditionally, in botany the term division (taxonomy), division has been used instead ...
by the name of Sphingobacteria. It contains the classes
Chlorobiota,
Fibrobacterota
Fibrobacterota is a small bacterial phylum which includes many of the major rumen bacteria, allowing for the degradation of plant-based cellulose in ruminant animals. Members of this phylum were categorized in other phyla. The genus '' Fibrobact ...
,
Bacteroidota
The phylum (biology), phylum Bacteroidota (synonym Bacteroidetes) is composed of three large classes of Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-negative, nonsporeforming, anaerobic or aerobic, and rod-shaped bacteria that are widely distributed in the envir ...
, and
Flavobacteria
The class Flavobacteriia is composed of a single class of environmental bacteria. It contains the family Flavobacteriaceae, which is the largest family in the phylum Bacteroidota. This class is widely distributed in soil, fresh, and seawater habi ...
. However, this megaclassification is not followed by the larger scientific community.
An analogous situation is seen with the
PVC group/Planctobacteria.
Notes
See also
*
List of bacterial orders
This article lists the orders of the Bacteria. The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)
and the phylogeny is based on 16 ...
*
List of bacteria genera
This article lists the genera of the bacteria
Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, ...
References
Superphyla
{{Bacteria-stub