Bacillus cereus
What's this?
- A
- G
- A
- C
- T
- T
- G
- A
- G
- T
- G
- C
- A
- G
- A
- A
- G
- A
- G
- G
- A
- A
- A
- G
Its ID gene: the stretch scientists read to tell microbes apart. Each bar is one letter of its DNA. Every species has its own order of letters, so the pattern works like a fingerprint. Close relatives share most of it.
16S rRNA gene, V4 region: the 253 letters between the standard primers (515F/806R), which are the same in every species. One reference sequence; strains can differ by a letter or two. NCBI NR_115714.1
Formerly Bacillus endorhythmos.
Among the largest for a gut microbe: longer than 90% of the 2,354 we have genomes for.
35% G+C, higher than 12% of gut microbes.
To scale: if its ID gene were 1 cm long, its genome would stretch 36 meters. Yours would stretch 21 kilometers. One reference genome; strains vary. NCBI GCF_006094295.1
What it can do
- Can make lactic acid What yogurt bacteria make; other microbes turn it into butyrate.
- Can ferment fiber Breaks down dietary fiber that our own enzymes can't.
- Can eat inulin A fiber in onions, garlic, leeks, chicory and bananas (also sold as FOS).
- Can use lactose The sugar in milk and dairy. 1 of 196 strains can
Not seen in its genomes: make butyrate, make propionate, eat resistant starch, eat pectin, feed on gut mucus, change bile acids, make B vitamins, make hydrogen sulfide, make methane.
All 13 capabilities and their evidence
| Capability | Verdict | Genome analysis | Lab tests | Published research |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Can make butyrate | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make propionate | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make lactic acid | Can | 139 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can ferment fiber | Can | 139 of 145 genomes | 0 of 194 strains · strip test Strip tests often miss fiber-eaters, so this doesn't override the genomes. | No papers |
| Can eat inulin | Can | 139 of 145 genomes | 0 of 191 strains · strip test Strip tests often miss fiber-eaters, so this doesn't override the genomes. | No papers |
| Can eat resistant starch | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can eat pectin | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can use lactose | Some strains | 0 of 145 genomes | 1 of 196 strains | No papers |
| Can feed on gut mucus | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can change bile acids | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make B vitamins | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make hydrogen sulfide | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
| Can make methane | Not seen | 0 of 145 genomes | — | No papers |
AGORA2 (Heinken et al. 2023) via VMH, CC BY 4.0 · BacDive (DSMZ), CC BY 4.0 · NJC19 (Lim et al., Scientific Data 2020), CC0
In healthy guts
Found in under 1% of healthy people.
- largest Segatella copri 6.2%
- 2nd largest Phocaeicola vulgatus 5.0%
- 3rd largest Faecalibacterium prausnitzii 4.7%
- 4th largest Bacteroides uniformis 3.2%
- 5th largest Agathobacter rectalis 2.5%
- 6th largest Alistipes putredinis 2.3%
- 7th largest Bifidobacterium longum 2.1%
- 8th largest Ruminococcus bromii 1.8%
- Bacillus cereus under 0.01%
- 2,169 other microbes, each a sliver 56.7%
- 15.6%
On average, a sliver, under 0.01% of the microbes in a healthy gut.
Every group, drawn the same way. Only some samples record age or sex, so each group says how many people it comes from. Tap one to see it above.