A Genomic View of the Human-Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron Symbiosis
Abstract
The human gut is colonized with a vast community of indigenous microorganisms that help shape our biology. Here, we present the complete genome sequence of the Gram-negative anaerobe Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, a dominant member of our normal distal intestinal microbiota. Its 4779-member proteome includes an elaborate apparatus for acquiring and hydrolyzing otherwise indigestible dietary polysaccharides and an associated environment-sensing system consisting of a large repertoire of extracytoplasmic function sigma factors and one- and two-component signal transduction systems. These and other expanded paralogous groups shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying symbiotic host-bacterial relationships in our intestine.
- Publication:
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Science
- Pub Date:
- March 2003
- DOI:
- 10.1126/science.1080029
- Bibcode:
- 2003Sci...299.2074X
- Keywords:
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- GENETICS