Application of Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis to Estimate the Diversity of Commensal Thermophiles

Symbiobacterium toebii has been reported as a thermophile exhibiting a commensal interaction with Geobacillus toebii. The distribution of the commensal thermophiles in various soils was investigated using a denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Based on the DGGE analysis, the enrichment condition for the growth of Symbiobacterium sp. was found to also enrich populations of several other microbial spp. as well as Symbiobacterium sp. In the enrichment experiment, several different 16S rDNA sequences of commensal thermophiles were detected in all of the soil samples tested, indicating that commensal thermophiles are widely distributed in various soils.