The signalling molecules involved in growth stimulation were identified and domesticated variants emerged that were capable of independent growth after repeated cultivation in coculture with helper strains. It is likely that such combinatorial approaches will be required in the future to further

improve the range of bacterial life on Earth that can be cultured in the laboratory. “
“Transposon Selleck Bcl-2 inhibitor mutagenesis of Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579 yielded cold-sensitive mutants. Mutants of genes encoding enzymes of the central metabolism were affected by cold, but also by other stresses, such as pH or salt, whereas a mutant with transposon insertion in the promoter region of BC0259 gene, encoding a putative DEAD-box RNA helicase displaying homology with Escherichia coli CsdA and Bacillus subtilis CshA RNA helicases, was only cold-sensitive. Expression of the BC0259 gene at 10 °C is reduced in the mutant. Analysis of the 5′ untranslated region revealed the transcriptional start and putative cold shock-responsive elements. The role of this

RNA helicase in the cold-adaptive response of B. cereus is discussed. Bacillus cereus is a Gram-positive, endospore-forming bacterium that frequently causes emetic and diarrhoeal types of food-borne illnesses. The growth domains of strains of B. cereus sensu lato range from nearly thermophilic to psychrotrophic, selleck kinase inhibitor and correlate with several phylogenetic clusters (Guinebretiere et al., 2008). The psychrotrophic strains are shared between two genetic groups: Group VI includes all Bacillus weihenstephanensis strains (Francis et al., 1998; von Stetten et al., 1998) having a low ability to cause gastroenteritis (Choma et al., 2000; Guinebretiere et al., 2008), whereas psychrotolerant strains of Group II have been associated with food poisoning outbreaks (Stenfors & Granum, 2001; Arnesen

et al., 2008; Guinebretiere et al., 2008). Bacillus cereus food-borne poisonings are the result of ingestion of foods supporting a high rate of multiplication of the bacterium and adaptation to low temperatures O-methylated flavonoid in case of refrigerated storage. Cold shock proteins are involved in B. cereus low-temperature adaptation, for instance in B. weihenstephanensis strains, where CspA protein appears to be strongly induced during low-temperature continuous growth and cold shock (Mayr et al., 1996). This protein may act as a chaperone to block the formation of RNA secondary structures at a low temperature. Bacillus cereus adapts membrane fluidity during low-temperature growth by increasing the proportion of branched-chain fatty acids and decreasing their equivalent chain length, and increasing the anteiso-/iso-branched ratio and the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids (Haque & Russell, 2004). Other mechanisms are likely involved as described for other bacteria. No functional evidence for the role of a gene in the cold adaptation of B. cereus has been obtained so far.