Editing Thiomargarita namibiensis (section)

=== Motility ===
With their lack of movement, ''[[Thiomargarita]]'' have adapted by evolving the very large nitrate-storing bubbles vacuoles, allowing them to survive long periods of nitrate and sulfide starvation.<ref>{{cite journal | pmid=20827290 | date=2011 | last1=Brock | first1=J. | last2=Schulz-Vogt | first2=H. N. | title=Sulfide induces phosphate release from polyphosphate in cultures of a marine Beggiatoa strain | journal=The ISME Journal | volume=5 | issue=3 | pages=497–506 | doi=10.1038/ismej.2010.135 | pmc=3105714 | bibcode=2011ISMEJ...5..497B }}</ref> Studies have shown that although there are no present motility features, the individual spherical cells can move slightly in a “slow jerky rolling motion,” but this does not give them the range of motion traditional motility features would.<ref name=":7">{{cite journal |last1=Salman |first1=Verena |last2=Amann |first2=Rudolf |last3=Girnth |first3=Anne-Christin |last4=Polerecky |first4=Lubos |last5=Bailey |first5=Jake V. |last6=Høgslund |first6=Signe |last7=Jessen |first7=Gerdhard |last8=Pantoja |first8=Silvio |last9=Schulz-Vogt |first9=Heide N. |title=A single-cell sequencing approach to the classification of large, vacuolated sulfur bacteria |journal=Systematic and Applied Microbiology |date=June 2011 |volume=34 |issue=4 |pages=243–259 |doi=10.1016/j.syapm.2011.02.001 |pmid=21498017 |bibcode=2011SyApM..34..243S }}</ref> Other large sulfur bacteria found in the same sediment samples as ''T. namibiensis'' with different structures, such as ''Thioploca'' and ''Beggiota,'' have gliding motility.<ref name=":7" /> However, ''Thiomargarita'' cells do not have gliding motility due to their shape.<ref name=":7" /> The vacuoles give ''T. namibiensis'' cells the ability to stay immobile, waiting for nitrate-rich waters to sweep over them once again.<ref name="Ahmad Kalanetra Nelson 2006"/> These vacuoles are what account for the size that scientists had previously thought impossible, and account for roughly 98% of the cell volume.<ref name="Mendell Clements Choat et al 2008">{{cite journal |last1=Mendell |first1=Jennifer E. |last2=Clements |first2=Kendall D. |last3=Choat |first3=J. Howard |last4=Angert |first4=Esther R. |title=Extreme polyploidy in a large bacterium |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |date=6 May 2008 |volume=105 |issue=18 |pages=6730–6734 |doi=10.1073/pnas.0707522105 |pmid=18445653 |pmc=2373351 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Because of the vast size of the liquid central vacuole, the [[cytoplasm]] separating the vacuole and the [[cell membrane]] is a very thin layer reported to be around 0.5-2 micrometers thick. This cytoplasm, however, is non-homogenous.<ref name="Mendell Clements Choat et al 2008" /> The cytoplasm contains small bubbles of [[sulfur]], [[polyphosphate]], and [[glycogen]]. These bubbles give the cytoplasm a “sponge-like” resemblance.<ref name="Schulz 2006 The Genus Thiomargarita"/>

As areas of nitrate and hydrogen sulfide do not mix together and ''T. namibiensis'' cells are immobile, the storage vacuoles in the cell provide a solution to this problem.<ref name="Ahmad Kalanetra Nelson 2006" /> Because of these storage vacuoles, cells are able to stay viable without growing (or dividing), with low relative amounts of cellular protein, and large amounts of nitrogen in the vacuoles. The storage vacuoles provide a novel solution which allows cells to wait for changing conditions while staying alive.<ref name="Schulz Brinkhoff Ferdelman et al 1999" /> These vacuoles are packed with sulfur granules that can be used for energy and contribute to their [[Lithotroph|chemolithotrophic]] metabolism. The [[vacuole]]s of ''Thiomargarita namibiensis'' contribute to their gigantism, allowing them to store nutrients for [[asexual reproduction]] of their complex [[genome]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brüchert |first1=Volker |last2=Jørgensen |first2=Bo Barker |last3=Neumann |first3=Kirsten |last4=Riechmann |first4=Daniela |last5=Schlösser |first5=Manfred |last6=Schulz |first6=Heide |title=Regulation of bacterial sulfate reduction and hydrogen sulfide fluxes in the central namibian coastal upwelling zone |journal=Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta |date=December 2003 |volume=67 |issue=23 |pages=4505–4518 |doi=10.1016/S0016-7037(03)00275-8 |bibcode=2003GeCoA..67.4505B }}</ref>