Summary Ecological and evolutionary processes involved in magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) adaptation to their environment have been a matter of debate for many years. Ongoing efforts for their characterization are progressively contributing to understand these processes, including the genetic and molecular mechanisms responsible for biomineralization. Despite numerous culture‐independent MTB characterizations, essentially within...

Summary Magnetotactic bacteria ( MTB ) are capable of synthesizing intracellular organelles, the magnetosomes, that are membrane‐bounded magnetite or greigite crystals arranged in chains. Although MTB are widely spread in various ecosystems, few axenic cultures are available, and only freshwater M agnetospirillum spp. have been genetically analysed. Here, we present the complete genome sequence of a marine magnetotactic spiril...

Summary Magnetotactic bacteria ( MTB ) represent a group of diverse motile prokaryotes that biomineralize magnetosomes, the organelles responsible for magnetotaxis. Magnetosomes consist of intracellular, membrane‐bounded, tens‐of‐nanometre‐sized crystals of the magnetic minerals magnetite ( Fe 3 O 4 ) or greigite ( Fe 3 S 4 ) and are usually organized as a chain within the cell acting like a compass needle. Most information re...

Summary Horizontal gene transfer ( HGT ), the transfer of genetic material other than by descent, is thought to have played significant roles in the evolution and distribution of genes in prokaryotes. These include those responsible for the ability of motile, aquatic magnetotactic bacteria ( MTB ) to align and swim along magnetic field lines and the biomineralization of magnetosomes that are responsible for this behaviour. The...