Methylobacterium

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Genus of bacteria

title: "Methylobacterium" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["hyphomicrobiales", "bacteria-genera"] description: "Genus of bacteria" topic_path: "general/hyphomicrobiales" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylobacterium" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of bacteria ::

| image=Methylobacterium_jeotgali.jpg | image_caption=Methylobacterium jeotgali strain S2R03-9T | taxon = Methylobacterium | authority = Patt et al. 1976 (Approved Lists 1980) | type_species = Methylobacterium organophilum | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = See text.

Methylobacterium is a genus of bacteria, also designated as Pink-Pigmented Facultative Methylotrophs (PPFMs). Methylobacterium is commonly found in soil, water, and particularly in association with the phyllosphere, the aerial part of plants. Methylobacterium is characterized by its ability to metabolize one-carbon compounds like methanol released by plant leaves. Methylobacterium plays key roles in nutrient cycling and plant-microbe interactions, often promoting plant growth and resilience through hormone production and stress mitigation. Methylobacterium is a model in biotechnology, already used commercially for protein production, bioremediation, and as a biostimulant in agriculture.

Methylobacterium has also been identified as a contaminant of DNA extraction kit reagents, which may lead to its erroneous appearance in microbiota or metagenomic datasets. In March 2021, a new species, named Methylobacterium ajmalii, associated with three new strains, designated IF7SW-B2T, IIF1SW-B5, and IIF4SW-B5, were reported to have been discovered, for the first time, on the International Space Station.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Astral-species-tree-GBEpaper-ForWiki.jpg" caption="pmc=9364378 }})"] ::

Debate on ''Methylobacterium'' taxonomy

In 2018, 11 Methylobacterium species, including Methylobacterium extorquens, were transferred to Methylorubrum. This emendation mostly relied on the 16S rRNA gene phylogeny. In 2021 and 2022, two studies based on phylogenomic and phenotypic data independently pointed the lack of support for Methylorubrum as a distinct genus, calling for its abandonment and the reinstatement of the former Methylobacterium taxonomy. In 2025, despite controversy, and its emendation back to the original Methylobacterium taxonomy, Methylorubrum was still a valid genus name in some databases like NCBI and in the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature.

Natural genetic transformation

Natural genetic transformation in bacteria is a process involving transfer of DNA from one cell to another through the intervening medium, and the integration of the donor sequence into the recipient genome by homologous recombination. Methylobacterium organophilum cells are able to undergo genetic transformation and become competent for DNA uptake near the end of the exponential growth phase.

Species

Methylobacterium comprises the following species (excluding species reclassified in Methylorubrum):

References

References

  1. "''Methylobacterium''". [[LPSN]].
  2. (January 2021). "Potentials, Utilization, and Bioengineering of Plant Growth-Promoting Methylobacterium for Sustainable Agriculture". Sustainability.
  3. (2021). "Fine-Scale Adaptations to Environmental Variation and Growth Strategies Drive Phyllosphere ''Methylobacterium'' Diversity". mBio.
  4. (13 October 2023). "Metabolism-linked methylotaxis sensors responsible for plant colonization in Methylobacterium aquaticum strain 22A". Frontiers in Microbiology.
  5. (2016). "The Arabidopsis leaf transcriptome reveals distinct but also overlapping responses to colonization by phyllosphere commensals and pathogen infection with impact on plant health". New Phytologist.
  6. (1 March 2004). "Plant colonization by pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophic bacteria (PPFMs)". FEMS Microbiology Ecology.
  7. (1 June 2022). "Employing methylotrophs for a green economy: one-carbon to fuel them all and through metabolism redesign them". Current Opinion in Microbiology.
  8. (2014). "Reagent and laboratory contamination can critically impact sequence-based microbiome analyses". BMC Biology.
  9. [[LPSN]]: [https://lpsn.dsmz.de/species/methylobacterium-ajmalii Species ''Methylobacterium ajmalii''] Bijlani ''et al''. 2021
  10. Bowler, Jacinta. (16 March 2021). "Microbes Unknown to Science Discovered on The International Space Station". [[ScienceAlert]].
  11. Rogers, Adam. (April 5, 2021). "Sneaky New Bacteria on the ISS Could Build a Future on Mars". [[Wired (magazine).
  12. (1 August 2022). "Comprehensive Phylogenomics of Methylobacterium Reveals Four Evolutionary Distinct Groups and Underappreciated Phyllosphere Diversity". Genome Biology and Evolution.
  13. (2018). "Review of the genus ''Methylobacterium'' and closely related organisms: A proposal that some ''Methylobacterium'' species be reclassified into a new genus, ''Methylorubrum'' gen. nov.". Int J Syst Evol Microbiol.
  14. (2021). "Comprehensive Comparative Genomics and Phenotyping of Methylobacterium Species". Front Microbiol.
  15. (2025). "Led astray by 16S rRNA: phylogenomics reaffirms the monophyly of ''Methylobacterium'' and lack of support for ''Methylorubrum'' as a genus". ISME J.
  16. (1977). "Genetic transformation in ''Methylobacterium organophilum''". J. Gen. Microbiol..
  17. "''Methylobacteriaceae''". [[List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature]] (LPSN).
  18. (2021). "''Methylobacterium ajmalii'' sp. nov., Isolated From the International Space Station". Front Microbiol.

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hyphomicrobialesbacteria-genera