Abstract

The phylum Thermotogae is comprised of anaerobic, thermophilic, as well as mesophilic bacteria that are surrounded by an outer sheathlike envelope referred to as a “toga.” The species from this deep-branching group exhibit Gram-negative staining, but due to the absence of an archetypal outer cell membrane, they are considered monoderm (or atypical diderm) bacteria. This phylum presently contains 10 genera harboring 41 validated species which …