australis strain IT-1 suggest the strain is capable of nitrogen fixation, sulfur reduction and oxidation, synthesis of intracellular polyphosphate granules and transporting iron with low and high affinity. High-speed microscopy imaging showed the cells move in a straight line rather than in the helical trajectory described for other magnetotactic cocci. Cells of this species synthesize a single chain of elongated, cuboctahedral magnetite (Fe 3O 4) magnetosomes that cause them to align along magnetic field lines while they swim being propelled by two bundles of flagella at velocities up to 300 μm s −1. Genomic and ultrastructural analyses were combined to characterize the cultivated magnetotactic coccus Magnetofaba australis strain IT-1. Understanding the genetic composition of the few cultivated MTB along with the unique morphological features of this group of bacteria may provide an important framework for discerning their potential biogeochemical roles in natural environments. Magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) are a unique group of prokaryotes that have a potentially high impact on global geochemical cycling of significant primary elements because of their metabolic plasticity and the ability to biomineralize iron-rich magnetic particles called magnetosomes.
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