An ABC-transporter system homolog in an organism of the phylogenetic domain Archaea.

A cluster of genes was identified in an archaeal organism, the methanogen Methanosarcina mazei S-6, that was a homolog of the ABC-transporter system loci of several organisms belonging to the phylogenetic domain Bacteria. The gene number, size, and organization were also similar. The proteins encoded by these genes were similar in structure, hydrophilicity-hydrophobicity profiles, and motifs to the equivalent components of homolog systems in bacteria and eucarya.