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Microorganisms
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Bacillus: Molecular Considerations
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Bacillus: Molecular Considerations

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Microbiology and Immunology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2020) | Viewed by 27328

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Lee Bulla Jr

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX 75083-0688, USA
Interests: Bacillus; molecular biology; PCR; sporulation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The bacteria that constitute the genus Bacillus are among the most ubiquitous in nature and diverse physiologically. The majority of Bacillus species studied, to date, are beneficial to various commercial and industrial endeavors, medicine and pharmaceutics and to agriculture. Indeed, some are quite helpful nutritionally, serving as food supplements and probiotics. Others such as B. cereus and B. anthracis are potential human and animal pathogens. The objective of this Special Issue of Microorganisms is to present some of the latest molecular experimental approaches for studying various Bacillus species and call attention to the benefits and utility of this group of bacteria. Original research articles, as well as review articles, are invited.

Prof. Dr. Lee Bulla Jr
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 4204 KiB  
Article
Comparative Genome Analysis of Bacillus sporothermodurans with Its Closest Phylogenetic Neighbor, Bacillus oleronius, and Bacillus cereus and Bacillus subtilis Groups
by Rodney Owusu-Darko, Mushal Allam, Arshad Ismail, Carlos A. S. Ferreira, Sílvia D. de Oliveira and Elna M. Buys
Microorganisms 2020, 8(8), 1185; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8081185 - 4 Aug 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4057
Abstract
Bacillus sporothermodurans currently possesses one of the most highly heat-resistant spores (HRS), which can withstand ultra-high temperature (UHT) processing. Determination of multiple whole genome sequences of B. sporothermodurans provided an opportunity to perform the first comparative genome analysis between strains and with [...] Read more.
Bacillus sporothermodurans currently possesses one of the most highly heat-resistant spores (HRS), which can withstand ultra-high temperature (UHT) processing. Determination of multiple whole genome sequences of B. sporothermodurans provided an opportunity to perform the first comparative genome analysis between strains and with B. oleronius, B. cereus, and B. subtilis groups. In this study, five whole genome sequences of B. sporothermodurans strains, including those belonging to the HRS clone (SAD and BR12) normally isolated from UHT milk, were compared with the aforementioned Bacillus species for gene clusters responsible for heat resistance. In the phylogenomic analysis, B. sporothermodurans, with its closest phylogenetic neighbor, B. oleronius, clustered with B. thermoamylovorans and B. thermotolerans. Heat shock proteins GrpE, GroES, GroEL, and DnaK presented identical sequences for all B. sporothermodurans strains, indicating that differences in functional efficiency are not involved in the thermal resistance variations. However, comparing all species evaluated, B. sporothermodurans exhibited a different gene configuration in the chromosomal region of the heat shock protein GrpE. Furthermore, only B. sporothermodurans strains presented the stage II sporulation protein P gene located in this region. Multisequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis of the ClpB protein showed differences for HRS and non-HRS strains. The study identified ClpC, ClpE, and ClpX as the three ATPases putatively involved in protein disaggregation in B. sporothermodurans. Bacillussporothermodurans exhibits high homology with other Bacillus species in the DnaK, DnaJ, GroEL, and GroES cluster of genes involved in heat resistance. The data presented here pave the way to select and evaluate the phenotypic effects of genes putatively involved in heat resistance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacillus: Molecular Considerations)
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12 pages, 1057 KiB  
Article
Identification and Pathogenic Potential of Bacillus cereus Strains Isolated from a Dairy Processing Plant Producing PDO Taleggio Cheese
by Erica Tirloni, Simone Stella, Cristian Bernardi, Diletta Mazzantini, Francesco Celandroni and Emilia Ghelardi
Microorganisms 2020, 8(6), 949; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8060949 - 24 Jun 2020
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3228
Abstract
Low levels of contamination by Bacillus cereus at the cheese farm is essential for reducing any opportunity for growth prior consumption. In this study, B. cereus distribution in a plant producing Protected Designation of Origin Taleggio cheese was investigated and the virulence potential [...] Read more.
Low levels of contamination by Bacillus cereus at the cheese farm is essential for reducing any opportunity for growth prior consumption. In this study, B. cereus distribution in a plant producing Protected Designation of Origin Taleggio cheese was investigated and the virulence potential of the isolates was evaluated. Seventy-four samples were collected from Food and Non Food Contact Surfaces (FCS, NFCS), saline curd, and Taleggio. The eleven isolates were identified, typified, and clustered. Strains were tested for the production of hemolysins, hemolysin BL (HBL), phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C (PC-PLC), proteases, and biofilm, and for the presence of chromosomal toxin-encoding genes (sph, plcA, cytK, entFM, bcet, entS, nheA, nheB, nheC). B. cereus was detected on NFCS, FCS, and curd, but not in Taleggio. The isolates were grouped into six clusters, and all produced PC-PLC, hemolysins, and proteases, and most of them HBL (66.7%). All the clusters harbored the nheA, sph, plcA, entFM, and cytK genes, and some also nheB (83.3%), nheC (66.7%), bcet (50.0%), and entS (66.7%). All strains showed biofilm-forming ability. Our data reveal possible contamination of production plants and cheese curd by potentially virulent B. cereus, but bacterial absence in Taleggio highlights the efficacy of a proper management of the production phases in assuring consumer’s protection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacillus: Molecular Considerations)
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14 pages, 5988 KiB  
Article
SpoVG Is Necessary for Sporulation in Bacillus anthracis
by Meng Chen, Yufei Lyu, Erling Feng, Li Zhu, Chao Pan, Dongshu Wang, Xiankai Liu and Hengliang Wang
Microorganisms 2020, 8(4), 548; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8040548 - 10 Apr 2020
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3316
Abstract
The Bacillus anthracis spore constitutes the infectious form of the bacterium, and sporulation is an important process in the organism’s life cycle. Herein, we show that disruption of SpoVG resulted in defective B. anthracis sporulation. Confocal microscopy demonstrated that a ΔspoVG mutant [...] Read more.
The Bacillus anthracis spore constitutes the infectious form of the bacterium, and sporulation is an important process in the organism’s life cycle. Herein, we show that disruption of SpoVG resulted in defective B. anthracis sporulation. Confocal microscopy demonstrated that a ΔspoVG mutant could not form an asymmetric septum, the first morphological change observed during sporulation. Moreover, levels of spoIIE mRNA were reduced in the spoVG mutant, as demonstrated using β-galactosidase activity assays. The effects on sporulation of the ΔspoVG mutation differed in B. anthracis from those in B. subtilis because of the redundant functions of SpoVG and SpoIIB in B. subtilis. SpoVG is highly conserved between B. anthracis and B. subtilis. Conversely, BA4688 (the protein tentatively assigned as SpoIIB in B. anthracis) and B. subtilis SpoIIB (SpoIIBBs) share only 27.9% sequence identity. On complementation of the B. anthracis ΔspoVG strain with spoIIBBs, the resulting strain pBspoIIBBs/ΔspoVG could not form resistant spores, but partially completed the prespore engulfment stage. In agreement with this finding, mRNA levels of the prespore engulfment gene spoIIM were significantly increased in strain pBspoIIBBs/ΔspoVG compared with the ΔspoVG strain. Transcription of the coat development gene cotE was similar in the pBspoIIBBs/ΔspoVG and ΔspoVG strains. Thus, unlike in B. subtilis, SpoVG appears to be required for sporulation in B. anthracis, which provides further insight into the sporulation mechanisms of this pathogen. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacillus: Molecular Considerations)
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12 pages, 4917 KiB  
Article
Phylogenetic Analysis of Bacillus cereus sensu lato Isolates from Commercial Bee Pollen Using tRNACys-PCR
by José Luis Hernández Flores, Diana Salinas Landaverde, Yonuen Pacheco Huerta, Vania Lizeth Guerra Castillo, María de los Ángeles Barrios Sánchez, Iván Arvizu Hernández, Miguel Ángel Ramos López, Erika Álvarez Hidalgo, George H. Jones and Juan Campos Guillén
Microorganisms 2020, 8(4), 524; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8040524 - 6 Apr 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3014
Abstract
Endospore-forming bacteria related to the Bacillus cereus group produce toxins that cause illnesses in organisms from invertebrates to mammals, including foodborne illnesses in humans. As commercial bee pollen can be contaminated with these bacteria, a comprehensive microbiological risk assessment of commercial bee pollen [...] Read more.
Endospore-forming bacteria related to the Bacillus cereus group produce toxins that cause illnesses in organisms from invertebrates to mammals, including foodborne illnesses in humans. As commercial bee pollen can be contaminated with these bacteria, a comprehensive microbiological risk assessment of commercial bee pollen must be incorporated into the relevant regulatory requirements, including those that apply in Mexico. To facilitate detection of members of this group of bacteria, we have developed a PCR strategy that is based on the amplification of the single-copy tRNACys gene and specific genes associated with tRNACys to detect Bacillus cereus sensu lato (B. cereus s.l.). This tRNACys-PCR-based approach was used to examine commercial bee pollen for endospore-forming bacteria. Our analysis revealed that 3% of the endospore-forming colonies isolated from a commercial source of bee pollen were related to B. cereus s.l., and this result was corroborated by phylogenetic analysis, bacterial identification via MALDI-TOF MS, and detection of enterotoxin genes encoding the HBL and NHE complexes. The results show that the isolated colonies are closely related phylogenetically to B. cereus, B. thuringiensis, and B. bombysepticus. Our results indicate that the tRNACys-PCR, combined with other molecular tools, will be a useful approach for identifying B. cereus s.l. and will assist in controlling the spread of potential pathogens. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacillus: Molecular Considerations)
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Review

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19 pages, 371 KiB  
Review
The Significance of Bacillus spp. in Disease Suppression and Growth Promotion of Field and Vegetable Crops
by Dragana Miljaković, Jelena Marinković and Svetlana Balešević-Tubić
Microorganisms 2020, 8(7), 1037; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8071037 - 13 Jul 2020
Cited by 217 | Viewed by 12891
Abstract
Bacillus spp. produce a variety of compounds involved in the biocontrol of plant pathogens and promotion of plant growth, which makes them potential candidates for most agricultural and biotechnological applications. Bacilli exhibit antagonistic activity by excreting extracellular metabolites such as antibiotics, cell wall [...] Read more.
Bacillus spp. produce a variety of compounds involved in the biocontrol of plant pathogens and promotion of plant growth, which makes them potential candidates for most agricultural and biotechnological applications. Bacilli exhibit antagonistic activity by excreting extracellular metabolites such as antibiotics, cell wall hydrolases, and siderophores. Additionally, Bacillus spp. improve plant response to pathogen attack by triggering induced systemic resistance (ISR). Besides being the most promising biocontrol agents, Bacillus spp. promote plant growth via nitrogen fixation, phosphate solubilization, and phytohormone production. Antagonistic and plant growth-promoting strains of Bacillus spp. might be useful in formulating new preparations. Numerous studies of a wide range of plant species revealed a steady increase in the number of Bacillus spp. identified as potential biocontrol agents and plant growth promoters. Among different mechanisms of action, it remains unclear which individual or combined traits could be used as predictors in the selection of the best strains for crop productivity improvement. Due to numerous factors that influence the successful application of Bacillus spp., it is necessary to understand how different strains function in biological control and plant growth promotion, and distinctly define the factors that contribute to their more efficient use in the field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bacillus: Molecular Considerations)
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