''Thiobacillus'' is a genus of

Gram-negative Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that, unlike gram-positive bacteria, do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. Their defining characteristic is that their cell envelope consists ...

Betaproteobacteria ''Betaproteobacteria'' are a class of Gram-negative bacteria, and one of the six classes of the phylum '' Pseudomonadota'' (synonym Proteobacteria). Metabolism The ''Betaproteobacteria'' comprise over 75 genera and 400 species. Together, they ...

. ''Thiobacillus thioparus'' is the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

of the genus, and the type strain thereof is the Starkey^T strain, isolated by Robert Starkey in the 1930s from a field at

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

in the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

. While over 30 "species" have been named in this genus since it was defined by

Martinus Beijerinck Martinus Willem Beijerinck (, 16 March 1851 – 1 January 1931) was a Dutch microbiologist and botanist who was one of the founders of virology and environmental microbiology. He is credited with the co-discovery of viruses A virus i ...

in 1904, (the first strain was observed by the biological oceanographer Alexander Nathansohn in 1902 - likely what we would now call ''

Halothiobacillus neapolitanus ''Halothiobacillus'' is a genus in the ''Gammaproteobacteria''. Both species are obligate aerobic bacteria; they require oxygen to grow. They are also halotolerant; they live in environments with high concentrations of salt or other solutes, b ...

''), most names were never validly or effectively published. The remainder were either reclassified into ''

Paracoccus ''Paracoccus'' is the scientific name of two genera of organisms and may refer to: * ''Paracoccus'' (bacterium), a genus of bacteria in the family Rhodobacteraceae * ''Paracoccus'' (bug), a genus of insects in the family Pseudococcidae {{Ge ...

'', ''

Starkeya ''Starkeya'' is a genus of bacteria from the family of Xanthobacteraceae The Xanthobacteraceae are a family of bacteria that includes ''Azorhizobium'', a genus of rhizobia. Xanthobacteraceae bacteria are diverse and Gram-negative, rod-shaped ...

'' (both in the

Alphaproteobacteria ''Alphaproteobacteria'' or ''α-proteobacteria'', also called ''α-Purple bacteria'' in earlier literature, is a class of bacteria in the phylum '' Pseudomonadota'' (formerly "Proteobacteria"). The '' Magnetococcales'' and '' Mariprofundales'' ar ...

); ''Sulfuriferula'', ''

Annwoodia The genus ''Annwoodia'' was named in 2017 to circumscribe an organism previously described as a member of the genus ''Thiobacillus'', ''Thiobacillus aquaesulis'' - the type and only species is ''Annwoodia aquaesulis'', which was isolated from th ...

'', ''

Thiomonas ''Thiomonas'' is a genus of Gram-negative, non-spore-forming bacteria in the family Comamonadaceae The Comamonadaceae are a family of the Betaproteobacteria.Willems A., J. De Ley, M. Gillis, and K. Kersters. ''Comamonadaceae, a New Family En ...

'' (in the

); ''

Halothiobacillus ''Halothiobacillus'' is a genus in the ''Gammaproteobacteria''. Both species are obligate aerobic bacteria; they require oxygen to grow. They are also halotolerant; they live in environments with high concentrations of salt or other solutes, b ...

'', ''

Guyparkeria ''Guyparkeria'' is a genus in the ''Gammaproteobacteria''. Both species are obligate aerobic bacteria; they require oxygen to grow. They are also halophilic and have varying degrees of thermophilicity. They live in environments with high concen ...

'' (in the

Gammaproteobacteria ''Gammaproteobacteria'' is a class of bacteria in the phylum ''Pseudomonadota'' (synonym ''Proteobacteria''). It contains about 250 genera, which makes it the most genus-rich taxon of the Prokaryotes. Several medically, ecologically, and scienti ...

), or ''

Thermithiobacillus ''Thermithiobacillus'' is a genus of nonsporeforming, rod-shaped, Gram-negative bacteria. The name derives from the Latin ''thermae'', for warm baths, and the Classical Greek θείος, ''theios'' for sulfur. The type species of this genus was ...

'' or ''

Acidithiobacillus ''Acidithiobacillus'' is a genus of the '' Acidithiobacillia'' in the phylum "'' Pseudomonadota''". This genus includes ten species of acidophilic microorganisms capable of sulfur and/or iron oxidation: ''Acidithiobacillus albertensis, Acidithiob ...

'' (in the

Acidithiobacillia ''Acidithiobacillia'' is a class of the phylum '' Pseudomonadota'' ("Proteobacteria"). Its type order, the ''Acidithiobacillales'', was formerly classified within the '' Gammaproteobacteria'', and comprises two families of sulfur-oxidising autot ...

). The very loosely defined "species" ''Thiobacillus trautweinii'' was where sulfur oxidising

heterotroph A heterotroph (; ) is an organism that cannot produce its own food, instead taking nutrition from other sources of organic carbon, mainly plant or animal matter. In the food chain, heterotrophs are primary, secondary and tertiary consumers, but ...

s and chemolithoheterotrophs were assigned in the 1910-1960s era, most of which were probably ''

Pseudomonas ''Pseudomonas'' is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria belonging to the family Pseudomonadaceae in the class Gammaproteobacteria. The 348 members of the genus demonstrate a great deal of metabolic diversity and consequently are able to colonize a ...

'' species. Many species named in this genus were never deposited in service collections and have been lost. All species are obligate autotrophs (using the

transaldolase Transaldolase is an enzyme () of the non-oxidative phase of the pentose phosphate pathway. In humans, transaldolase is encoded by the ''TALDO1'' gene. The following chemical reaction is catalyzed by transaldolase: : sedoheptulose 7-phospha ...

form of the

Calvin-Benson-Bassham cycle The Calvin cycle, light-independent reactions, bio synthetic phase, dark reactions, or photosynthetic carbon reduction (PCR) cycle of photosynthesis is a series of chemical reactions that convert carbon dioxide and hydrogen-carrier compounds into ...

) using elementary sulfur, thiosulfate, or polythionates as energy sources - the former ''Thiobacillus aquaesulis'' can grow weakly on complex media as a heterotroph, but has been reclassified to ''Annwoodia aquaesulis''. Some strains (E6 and Tk-m) of the type species ''Thiobacillus thioparus'' can use the sulfur from

dimethylsulfide Dimethyl sulfide (DMS) or methylthiomethane is an organosulfur compound with the formula . It is the simplest thioether and has a characteristic disagreeable odor. It is a flammable liquid that boils at . It is a component of the smell produced ...

dimethyldisulfide Dimethyl disulfide (DMDS) is an organic chemical compound with the molecular formula . It is a flammable liquid with an unpleasant, garlic-like odor resembling that of "leaking gas". The compound is colorless, although impure samples often appear ...

, or

carbon disulfide Carbon disulfide (also spelled as carbon disulphide) is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula and structure . It is also considered as the anhydride of thiocarbonic acid. It is a colorless, flammable, neurotoxic liquid that is used as ...

to support autotrophic growth - they oxidise the carbon from these species into

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...

and assimilate it. Sulfur oxidation is achieved via the Kelly-Trudinger pathway.

Reclassifications

As a result of

16S ribosomal RNA 16S ribosomal RNA (or 16 S rRNA) is the RNA component of the 30S subunit of a prokaryotic ribosome ( SSU rRNA). It binds to the Shine-Dalgarno sequence and provides most of the SSU structure. The genes coding for it are referred to as 16S ...

sequence analysis, many members of ''Thiobacillus'' have been reassigned. *''Thiobacillus versutus'' to ''

'' *''Thiobacillus acidophilus'' to ''

Acidiphilium ''Acidiphilium'' is a genus in the phylum Pseudomonadota (Bacteria). As the name suggests, this comprises a nutritionally diverse genus of bacteria adapted to life in extremely acidic conditions, and often exhibiting FeIII (ferric iron) reducti ...

'' *''

Thiobacillus intermedius ''Thiomonas intermedia'' is a Gram-negative, aerobic, moderately acidophilic bacterium from the genus '' Thiomonas'', which has the ability to oxidise sulfur compounds. ''Thiomonas intermedia'' was isolated from an sewage pipe in Hamburg H ...

'', '' Thiobacillus perometabolis'', '' Thiobacillus thermosulfatus'', and '' Thiobacilus cuprinus'' to ''

'' *''

Thiobacillus thiooxidans ''Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans'', formerly known as ''Thiobacillus thiooxidans'' until its reclassification into the newly designated genus ''Acidithiobacillus'' of the Acidithiobacillia subclass of Pseudomonadota, is a Gram-negative, rod-shaped ...

'', ''

Thiobacillus ferrooxidans ''Acidithiobacillus'' is a genus of the ''Acidithiobacillia'' in the phylum "''Pseudomonadota''". This genus includes ten species of acidophilic microorganisms capable of sulfur and/or iron oxidation: ''Acidithiobacillus albertensis, Acidithiobac ...

'', '' Thiobacillus caldus'', and ''Thiobacillus albertensis'' to ''

'' *''Thiobacillus aquaesulis'' to ''Annwoodia aquaesulis''. *''Thiobacillus neapolitanus'' to ''

'' *''Thiobacillus thyasiris'' to ''Thiomicrospira thyasirae'' *''Thiobacillus hydrothermalis'' and ''Thiobacillus halophilus'' firstly to ''

'' and later to ''

'' *'' Thiobacillus tepidarius'' to ''

References

{{Authority control Nitrosomonadales Betaproteobacteria Bacteria genera