Genomics of the “tumorigenes” clade of the family Rhizobiaceae and description of Rhizobium rhododendri sp. nov

This study revealed additional genomic and taxonomic diversity of tumorigenic agrobacteria. Tumorigenic strains isolated from rhododendron represent a novel species of the genusRhizobium for which the nameRhizobium rhododendri sp. nov. is proposed. Both species of the “tumorigenes” clade (R. rhododendri andR. tumorigenes), contain multipartite genomes. Synteny and phylogenetic analyses indicated that a large putative chromid ofR. rhododendri resulted from the cointegration of an ancestral megaplasmid and two putative chromids, following its divergence fromR. tumorigenes. AbstractTumorigenic members of the familyRhizobiaceae, known as agrobacteria, are responsible for crown and cane gall diseases of various crops worldwide. Tumorigenic agrobacteria are commonly found in the generaAgrobacterium,Allorhizobium, andRhizobium. In this study, we analyzed a distinct “tumorigenes” clade of the genusRhizobium, which includes the tumorigenic speciesRhizobium tumorigenes, as well as strains causing crown gall disease on rhododendron. Here, high-quality, closed genomes of representatives of the “tumorigenes” clade were generated, followed by comparative genomic and phylogenomic analyses. Additionally, the phenotypic characteristics of representatives of the “tumorigenes” clade were analyzed. Our results showed that the tumorigenic strains isolated from rhododendron represent a nove l species of the genusRhizobium for which the nameRhizobium rhododendri sp. nov. is proposed...
Source: MicrobiologyOpen - Category: Microbiology Authors: Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research