skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Microarray-based whole-genome hybridization as a tool for determining procaryotic species relatedness

Journal Article · · The ISME Journal

The definition and delineation of microbial species are of great importance and challenge due to the extent of evolution and diversity. Whole-genome DNA-DNA hybridization is the cornerstone for defining procaryotic species relatedness, but obtaining pairwise DNA-DNA reassociation values for a comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of procaryotes is tedious and time consuming. A previously described microarray format containing whole-genomic DNA (the community genome array or CGA) was rigorously evaluated as a high-throughput alternative to the traditional DNA-DNA reassociation approach for delineating procaryotic species relationships. DNA similarities for multiple bacterial strains obtained with the CGA-based hybridization were comparable to those obtained with various traditional whole-genome hybridization methods (r=0.87, P<0.01). Significant linear relationships were also observed between the CGA-based genome similarities and those derived from small subunit (SSU) rRNA gene sequences (r=0.79, P<0.0001), gyrB sequences (r=0.95, P<0.0001) or REP- and BOX-PCR fingerprinting profiles (r=0.82, P<0.0001). The CGA hybridization-revealed species relationships in several representative genera, including Pseudomonas, Azoarcus and Shewanella, were largely congruent with previous classifications based on various conventional whole-genome DNA-DNA reassociation, SSU rRNA and/or gyrB analyses. These results suggest that CGA-based DNA-DNA hybridization could serve as a powerful, high-throughput format for determining species relatedness among microorganisms.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
Earth Sciences Division
DOE Contract Number:
DE-AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
941680
Report Number(s):
LBNL-1126E; TRN: US200825%%640
Journal Information:
The ISME Journal, Vol. 2; Related Information: Journal Publication Date: 2008
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English