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Cell Biology Of The Entry Of Bdellovibrio And Like Organisms, Ryan M. Chanyi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Bdellovibrio and like organisms (BALOs) are obligate predators of Gram negative bacteria. Predation occurs via a periplasmic or epibiotic life cycle. A periplasmic predator invades the periplasmic space of a prey while an epibiotic predator remains on the exterior.

An analysis of the genome sequences of periplasmic predators, Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus and Bacteriovorax marinus, and epibiotic predators, Bdellovibrio exovorus and Micavibrio aeruginosavorus determined that the genome size of epibiotic predators was smaller, while the metabolic networks were highly conserved. No core set of invasion-specific genes was identified.

Both life cycles were characterized by cryoelectron microscopy. The periplasmic predator, Bd. bacteriovorus …