Salinispora tropica CNB-440

Salinispora tropica (strain ATCC BAA-916 / DSM 44818 / CNB-440) is an aerobic seawater-requiring marine actinomycete isolated from coarse beach sand off the Bahamas. The genus Salinispora is distinct from other actinomycetes however in that it resides in ocean sediments and is the first bacterium of its type to require seawater for growth thus providing opportunities to study marine adaptations in Gram-positive bacteria. One significant feature of S. tropica is its ability to produce structurally unique secondary metabolites. This observation supports the exploitation of marine actinomycetes as a source of new medicines. The metabolites observed from S. tropica include salinosporamide A, a potent inhibitor of the 20S proteasome that is currently in human clinical trials for the treatment of cancer. Interestingly, it has been observed that the three closely related Salinispora species produce dramatically different suites of secondary metabolites. These metabolites represent the single most significant phenotypic difference observed among the three species and raise questions about the ecological roles and evolutionary significance of secondary metabolites. (EBI Integr8)