Selenomonadales

The Selenomonadales are an order of bacteria within the class Negativicutes; unlike most other members of Firmicutes, they are Gram-negative. The phylogeny of this order was initially determined by 16S rRNA comparisons. More recently, molecular markers in the form of conserved signature indels (CSIs) have been found specific for all Selenomonadales species. On the basis of these markers, the Selenomonadales are inclusive of two distinct families, and are no longer the sole order within the Negativicutes. Several CSIs have also been found specific for both families, Sporomusaceae and Selenomonadceae. Samples of bacterial strains within this order have been isolated from the root canals of healthy human teeth.