However, because of improved molecular methods of identification and better descriptions for the genus, their agricultural relevance is becoming increasingly evident, especially as members of ecologically significant microbial communities associated with soil and plants.

For example, 16S rDNA phylogenetic analyses show Lysobacter clades that include sequences obtained from hydrothermal vents, isolates from Mt.

[1][4][9][43] Lysobacter gummosus was discovered living on the skin of redback salamanders and producing 2,4-diacetylphloroglucinol, a chemical which inhibits the growth of certain pathogenic fungi.

SB-K88 has been found to suppress damping-off disease in sugar beet and spinach through antibiosis and characteristic root colonization in perpendicular fashion Islam et al. (2005).

[51] Clay soils with natural suppressiveness against Rhizoctonia contained higher numbers of antagonistic isolates of L. gummosus, L. antibioticus, and/or L. capsici.

The strain produces numerous extracellular enzymes that contribute to biocontrol activity, including multiple forms of β-1,3-glucanases and chitinases.

First, the mutant phenotype implies that a broad range of genes is involved in secreted antimicrobials associated with the clp regulon, many of which remain unidentified.

However, strains harboring clp gene mutations provide a means to separate clp-regulated phenotypes from others (such as that describe below), thus making their evaluation feasible.