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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, June 2004, p. 3724-3732, Vol. 70, No. 6
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.6.3724-3732.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Discovery of the Novel Candidate Phylum "Poribacteria" in Marine Sponges

Lars Fieseler,1 Matthias Horn,2 Michael Wagner,2 and Ute Hentschel1*

Zentrum für Infektionsforschung, Universität Würzburg, D-97070 Würzburg, Germany,1 Abteilung Mikrobielle Ökologie, Institut für Ökologie und Naturschutz, Universität Wien, A-1090 Vienna, Austria2

Received 25 November 2003/ Accepted 23 February 2004

Marine sponges (Porifera) harbor large amounts of commensal microbial communities within the sponge mesohyl. We employed 16S rRNA gene library construction using specific PCR primers to provide insights into the phylogenetic identity of an abundant sponge-associated bacterium that is morphologically characterized by the presence of a membrane-bound nucleoid. In this study, we report the presence of a previously unrecognized evolutionary lineage branching deeply in the domain Bacteria that is moderately related to the Planctomycetes, Verrucomicrobia, and Chlamydia lines of decent. Because members of this lineage showed <75% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to known bacterial phyla, we suggest the status of a new candidate phylum, named "Poribacteria", to acknowledge the affiliation of the new bacterium with sponges. The affiliation of the morphologically conspicuous sponge bacterium with the novel phylogenetic lineage was confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization with newly designed probes targeting different sites of the poribacterial 16S rRNA. Consistent with electron microscopic observations of cell compartmentalization, the fluorescence signals appeared in a ring-shaped manner. PCR screening with "Poribacteria"-specific primers gave positive results for several other sponge species, while samples taken from the environment (seawater, sediments, and a filter-feeding tunicate) were PCR negative. In addition to a report for Planctomycetes, this is the second report of cell compartmentalization, a feature that was considered exclusive to the eukaryotic domain, in prokaryotes.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Zentrum für Infektionsforschung, Universität Würzburg, Röntgenring 11, D-97070 Würzburg, Germany. Phone: 49-931-312588. Fax: 49-931-312578. E-mail: ute.hentschel{at}mail.uni-wuerzburg.de.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, June 2004, p. 3724-3732, Vol. 70, No. 6
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.6.3724-3732.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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