Halorubrum is a genus in the family Halorubraceae. Halorubrum species are usually halophilic and can be found in waters with high salt concentration such as the Dead Sea or Lake Zabuye.

Genetic exchange

A population of the haloarchaea Halorubrum in its natural high salt concentration environment exchanged genetic information frequently by recombination. This population exhibited a degree of linkage equilibrium approaching that of a sexual population.

Taxonomy

In taxonomy, Halorubrum is a genus of the Halobacteriaceae.

Species

Halorubrum ejinorense was first isolated from Lake Ejinor in Inner Mongolia, China. Halorubrum lacusprofundi was first isolated in the 1980s from Deep Lake, Antarctica. Its genome, sequenced in 2008, consists of two chromosomes (one 2.74 Mb and the other 0.53 Mb) and one plasmid (0.43 Mb). Its β-galactosidase enzyme has been extensively studied to understand how proteins function in low-temperature, high-saline environments. One strain of H. lacusprofundi contains a plasmid for horizontal gene transfer, which takes place via a mechanism that uses vesicle-enclosed virus-like particles. Halorubrum sodomense was first identified in the Dead Sea in 1980. It requires a higher concentration of Mg2+ ions for growth than related halophiles. Its cell surface membrane contains Archaerhodopsin-3 (AR3), a photoreceptor protein which harvests the energy from sunlight to establish a proton motive force that is used for ATP synthesis. Mutants of AR3 are widely used as tools in optogenetics for neuroscience research. Halorubrum tibetense was first isolated from Lake Zabuye in Tibet, China. Halorubrum xinjiangense was first isolated from Xiao-Er-Kule Lake in Xinjiang, China. Several species and novel binomial names have been proposed, but not validly published. published.

Phylogeny

The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI).

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