Research progress in genomics of Myxobacteria

Abstract:

Myxobacteria are Gram-staining-negative and rod-shaped bacteria belonging to the order Myxococcales in the class of Deltaproteobacteria. The excellent capability of producing secondary metabolites makes myxobacteria one of the most important sources of natural products, following fungi and actinomycetes. However, the research and development of myxobacteria has been limited because of the difficulty to isolate and purify myxobacteria strains. With the advances in sequencing technology and bioinformatics, a large number of genomes of myxobacteria have been sequenced and released. In this paper, we reviewed the importance of research, value of resource development and difficulties of isolation and purification in myxobacteria, summarized the published myxobacterial genomes and their annotation information, introduced the research progress of myxobacterial genomics involved in myxobacterial ecology, predation mechanism, formation of fruiting bodies and producing of secondary metabolites. This paper is helpful for understanding the important value of genomics in myxobacteria research and for further investigating the metabolic mechanism and social behaviors of myxobacteria using multi-omics techniques, with great significance for resource collection and development of myxobacteria.