Sphingobium

Abstract Sphin.go'bi.um. N.L. neut. n. sphingosinum (from Gr. gen. n. sphingos , of sphinx, and suff. ‐ ine ) sphingosine; N.L. pref. sphingo ‐, pertaining to sphingosine; Gr. masc. n. bios , life; N.L. neut. n. Sphingobium , sphingosine‐containing life. Proteobacteria / Alphaproteobacteria / Sphingomonadales / Sphingomonadaceae / Sphingobium The genus Sphingobium belongs to the phylum Proteobacteria , class Alphaproteobacteria , order Sphingomonadales , and family Sphingomonadaceae . Members of this genus can be differentiated from other close relatives of the genera Sphingomonas , Sphingopyxis , and Novosphingobium by their cell morphology, mode of nutrition, composition of fatty acids, distribution of polar lipids in the bacterial cell wall, polyamine pattern, respiratory quinones, accumulation of poly‐β‐hydroxybutyrate (PHB) granules, and degradation of xenobiotics such as hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH). Several members had been isolated from different biological niches such as freshwater bodies, activated sludge, green algae, sediments, seawater, hydrocarbon‐contaminated sites, copper mines, rice rhizosphere, lettuce corky root, cold springs, vermicompost, and industrial wastewater treatment systems. Most of the members are slow‐growing, motile or nonmotile, nonsporulating, and flagellated or nonflagellated (bear polar or sub‐polar flagella). Able to assimilate a wide range of carbohydrates. Broad substrate specificities and diverse enzymatic activities make them promising candidates for the degradation of several environmental pollutants. Exploitation of their metabolic potential could open up new avenues in industrial microbiology. As per the genome taxonomy database, 103 genomes (draft as well as complete) of different strains of the genus Sphingobium are available on EzBioCloud. Such a large number of sequences provides an opportunity for taxonomic researchers to understand this genus in detail. DNA G + C content (mol%) : 58.8–66.8. Type species : Sphingobium yanoikuyae Takeuchi et al. 2001 VP (basonym: Sphingomonas yanoikuyae Yabuuchi et al. 1990, VL34)).