A Trait That Differentiates All Firmicutes from Actinobacteria Is

Question

A trait that differentiates all Firmicutes from Actinobacteria is
A) Gram stain character.
B) GC content.
C) oxygen requirements.
D) pathogenicity.
E) genome size.

Accepted Answer

Firmicutes and Actinobacteria have similar Gram stain characters and oxygen requirements, and can both be pathogenic. However, Firmicutes have a significantly lower GC content in their DNA compared to Actinobacteria, making it the trait that differentiates the two groups. Genome size alone is not a reliable differentiating factor as it can vary greatly within both Firmicutes and Actinobacteria.