Aeropyrum pernix

Aeropyrum pernix
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Archaea Phylum: Crenarchaeota Class: Thermoprotei Order: Desulfurococcales Family: Desulfurococcaceae Genus: Aeropyrum Species: A. pernix
Binomial name
Aeropyrum pernix Sako et al. 1996

Aeropyrum pernix is a heat-requiring extremophile species of Archaea, (procaryotes with a different ancestry than ordinary bacteria--and possibly everything else). It was the first strictly aerobic hyperthermophilic Archaea to be discovered.

Properties

Aeropyrum pernix appears as mostly regular cocci of 0.8 µm to 1.2 µm diameter. It grows between 70 ºC and 100 ºC (with an optimum temperature of 90-95 ºC), pH 5 to 9 (with an optimum at pH 7) and at 1.8 to 7.0% salinity (optimum, 3.5% salinity). It grows well on proteinaceous substrates, with a doubling time of approximately 200 minutes.

Discovery

Aeropyrum pernix was originally isolated aerobically from heated marine sediments and venting water collected at a solfataric vent off Kodakara-Jima Island, Japan.

Genome

The complete genome of Aeropyrum pernix has 1,669 kilobases, for 2,694 open reading frames (ORFs) were assigned. All the genes in the TCA cycle were found except for that of α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase . In its place, the genes coding for the two subunits of 2-oxoacid:ferredoxin oxidoreductase were identified.

References

• Sako Y et al. (1996) Aeropyrum pernix gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel aerobic hyperthermophilic archaeon growing at temperatures up to 100 degrees C. Int J Syst Bacteriol46:1070-7.
• Kawarabayasi et al. (1999) Complete Genome Sequence of an Aerobic Hyper-thermophilic Crenarchaeon, Aeropyrum pernix K1. DNA Research 6:83-101