K. xylinus is a member of the
acetic acid bacteria, a group of
Gram-negative aerobic bacteria that produce
acetic acid during
fermentation.
K. xylinus is unusual among the group in also producing
cellulose.
Bacterial cellulose (also sometimes known as nanocellulose) is involved in the formation of
biofilms. The
genome of a cellulose-deficient strain of
K. xylinus was sequenced in 2011, and followed by the genomes of cellulose-producing strains in 2014 and 2018. The first cellulose-producing strain had a genome consisting of one
chromosome 3.4
megabase pairs and five
plasmids, of which one is a "megaplasmid" of about 330
kilobase pairs. Key genes related to cellulose production occur in the four-gene
operon bcsABCD, which codes for the four subunits of the
cellulose synthase enzyme. All four genes are required for efficient cellulose production
in vivo, although BcsA and BscB are sufficient
in vitro. Several other genes in the
K. xylinus genome are also involved in cellulose production and regulation, including a
cellulase enzyme. ==Uses and significance==