Alphaproteobacteria

Alphaproteobacteria or α-proteobacteria, also called α-Purple bacteria in earlier literature, is a class of bacteria in the phylum Pseudomonadota (also called "Proteobacteria"). The Magnetococcales and Mariprofundales are considered basal or sister to the Alphaproteobacteria. The Alphaproteobacteria are highly diverse and possess few commonalities, but nevertheless share a common ancestor. Like all proteobacteria, its members are gram-negative, although some of its intracellular parasitic members lack peptidoglycan and are consequently gram variable.

==Characteristics== The Alphaproteobacteria are a diverse taxon and comprise several phototrophic genera, several genera metabolising C1-compounds (e.g. Methylobacterium spp.), symbionts of plants (e.g. Rhizobium spp.), endosymbionts of arthropods (Wolbachia) and intracellular pathogens (e.g. Rickettsia). Moreover, the class is sister to the protomitochondrion, the bacterium that was engulfed by the eukaryotic ancestor and gave rise to the mitochondria, which are organelles in eukaryotic cells (see Endosymbiotic theory). A species of technological interest is Agrobacterium tumefaciens (also called Rhizobium radiobacter): scientists often use this species to transfer foreign DNA into plant genomes. Aerobic anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria, such as Pelagibacter ubique, are alphaproteobacteria that are a widely distributed and may constitute over 10% of the open ocean microbial community.