Complete genome sequence of the halophilic bacterium Spirochaeta africana type strain (Z-7692t) from the alkaline Lake Magadi in the East African Rift

Abstract

Spirochaeta africana Zhilina et al. 1996 is an anaerobic, aerotolerant, spiral-shaped bacte-rium that is motile via periplasmic flagella. The type strain of the species, Z-7692T, was iso-lated in 1993 or earlier from a bacterial bloom in the brine under the trona layer in a shallow lagoon of the alkaline equatorial Lake Magadi in Kenya. Here we describe the features of this organism, together with the complete genome sequence, and annotation. Considering the pending reclassification of S. caldaria to the genus Treponema, S. africana is only the second 'true' member of the genus Spirochaeta with a genome-sequenced type strain to be pub-lished. The 3,285,855 bp long genome of strain Z-7692T with its 2,817 protein-coding and 57 RNA genes is a part of the Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea project.