Iron acquisition in the marine actinomycete genus Salinispora is controlled by the desferrioxamine family of siderophores.

Many bacteria produce siderophores for sequestration of growth-essential iron. Analysis of the Salinispora genomes suggests that these marine actinomycetes support multiple hydroxamate- and phenolate-type siderophore pathways. We isolated and characterized desferrioxamines (DFOs) B and E from all three recognized Salinispora species and linked their biosyntheses in S. tropica CNB-440 and S. arenicola CNS-205 to the des locus through PCR-directed mutagenesis. Gene inactivation of the predicted iron-chelator biosynthetic loci sid2-4 did not abolish siderophore chemistry. Additionally, these pathways could not restore the native growth characteristics of the des mutants in iron-limited media, although differential iron-dependent regulation was observed for the yersiniabactin-like sid2 pathway. Consequently, this study indicates that DFOs are the primary siderophores in laboratory cultures of Salinispora.