The Phosphatomes of the Multicellular Myxobacteria Myxococcus xanthus and Sorangium cellulosum in Comparison with Other Prokaryotic Genomes

BACKGROUND: Analysis of the complete genomes from the multicellular myxobacteria Myxococcus xanthus and Sorangium cellulosum identified the highest number of eukaryotic-like protein kinases (ELKs) compared to all other genomes analyzed. High numbers of protein phosphatases (PPs) could therefore be anticipated, as reversible protein phosphorylation is a major regulation mechanism of fundamental biological processes. METHODOLOGY: Here we report an intensive analysis of the phosphatomes of M. xanthus and S. cellulosum in which we constructed phylogenetic trees to position these sequences relative to PPs from other prokaryotic organisms. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Predominant observations were: (i) M. xanthus and S. cellulosum possess predominantly Ser/Thr PPs; (ii) S. cellulosum encodes the highest number of PP2c-type phosphatases so far reported for a prokaryotic organism; (iii) in contrast to M. xanthus only S. cellulosum encodes high numbers of SpoIIE-like PPs; (iv) there is a significant lack of synteny among M. xanthus and S. cellulosum, and (v) the degree of co-organization between kinase and phosphatase genes is extremely low in these myxobacterial genomes. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that there has been a greater expansion of ELKs than PPs in multicellular myxobacteria.