Bacteria Genomes - BACTEROIDES THETAIOTAOMICRON

Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron is a Gram-negative anaerobe and is a dominant member of our normal distal intestinal microbiota. The human gut is colonised with a vast community of indigenous microorganisms that help shape our biology. B. thetaiotaomicron has a 4779-member proteome including an elaborate apparatus for acquiring and hydrolysing otherwise indigestible dietary polysaccharides and an associated environment-sensing system consisting of a large repertoire of extracytoplasmic function sigma factors. These and other expanded paralogous groups shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying symbiotic host-bacterial relationships in our intestine.

Efforts to improve the use of the fibre portion of animal diets has centered on physical and chemical treatments of feed materials. An alternative to this approach would be to modify the activities of the microorganisms themselves to increase their capacity for digestion of these materials. Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron has been studied for this purpose and has been seen to produce high levels of a digestive enzyme that may help breakdown plants.

References:

Science 299(5615):2074-2076(2003)
http://www.nal.usda.gov/ttic/tektran/data/000007/13/0000071312.html