Acinetobacter baylyi is a bacterial species of the genus Acinetobacter,[1][2] which was discovered in activated sludge in Victoria, Australia alongside six other new Acinetobacter species.[3]A. baylyi is named after Ronald Bayly, an Australian microbiologist.[3] As with other species of Acinetobacter it is a nonmotile, gram negativecoccobacillus. It grows under aerobic conditions, is catalase positive and oxidase negative. The species is naturally competent, meaning that it can take up free DNA from its surroundings and incorporate the DNA into its own chromosomal DNA by transformation (genetics).[4]
Metabolism
A. baylyi metabolic pathways have been used for many studies in microbial metabolism. This is due to its use of different compounds for metabolism.[5] The use of D-Asp and L-Asp in A. baylyi is an example of this metabolic tolerance for different compounds. A. baylyi is able to use both of these as carbon sources and thus opens the door to see how d enantiomers can be used for bacterial growth.[6] Use of A. baylyi's proteins in heterologous expression inside of E. coli allowed for the bacteria to use the D-enantiomer of Asp as a carbon source.[6]
A. baylyi is known for its fast growth rate and ability to be easily cultured.[4]A. baylyi is also known as an omnipresent bacteria meaning it can be found many places in nature.[2]A. baylyi, specifically the strain ADP1, has been used for over a quarter of a century in several molecular biology studies.[4] For these reasons, A. baylyi is used in multiple laboratory techniques including genetics, such as gene duplication and amplification,[4] and bacterial metabolism.[5][4]
Genetic mechanisms
One major characteristic of A. baylyi is its ability to take in free DNA from the environment. It does so by importing the DNA by a special mechanism and then incorporating the DNA into its chromosome. The ease at which A. baylyi can take in foreign DNA is beneficial to its survival, as the intake of foreign DNA contributes greatly to antibiotic resistance. This makes A. baylyi an ideal microbe for laboratory experiments.[4]
