Genomics of Industrially and Medically Relevant Corynebacteria
Andreas Tauch
from: Corynebacteria: Genomics and Molecular Biology (Edited by: Andreas Burkovski). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2008)
Abstract
The genus Corynebacterium is a diverse collection of Gram-positive microorganisms with a DNA of high G+C content. Many species of this genus were originally isolated from human clinical samples, whereas others were detected in animals and diverse environmental habitats. The apparent heterogeneity of the genus Corynebacterium poses challenges and opportunities when characterizing individual species at the genomic level. To date, the complete genome sequences of four species have been published, and sequencing of at least two more species is ongoing. These genomic data dramatically improved our understanding of the corynebacterial genome architecture, metabolic processes, species-specific traits, industrial capabilities, and potential roles in pathogenicity of humans and animals. This article describes the current status of Corynebacterium genome projects and summarizes the major findings of functional and comparative genomics studies read more ...
