Bacteria Genomes - ERYTHROBACTER LITORALIS

Erythrobacter are Gram-negative facultative photoheterotrophs, metabolising organic carbon when available, but are capable of photosynthetic light utilisation when organic carbon is scarce. They are globally distributed in the euphotic zone and only recently recognised as a component of the marine microbial community that appears to be critical to the cycling of both organic and inorganic carbon in the ocean.

Erythrobacter litoralis is a halotolerant aerobic phototroph that was found in the Sargasso Sea. It is an abundant marine organism that has been little studied to date. Now that the complete genome of Erythrobacter litoralis is published comparative studies between it and other Erythrobacter species will increase our knowledge of the of marine microbes and aid in the study of the ocean's biological and chemical processes.

References:

http://www.venterinstitute.org/press/news/news_2005_02_24.php