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Keywords = marine extremophiles

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16 pages, 8075 KiB  
Article
Structure of a Sulfated Capsular Polysaccharide from the Marine Bacterium Cobetia marina KMM 1449 and a Genomic Insight into Its Biosynthesis
by Maxim S. Kokoulin, Yulia V. Savicheva, Alina P. Filshtein, Ludmila A. Romanenko and Marina P. Isaeva
Mar. Drugs 2025, 23(1), 29; https://doi.org/10.3390/md23010029 - 8 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1412
Abstract
Some marine and extremophilic microorganisms are capable of synthesizing sulfated polysaccharides with a unique structure. A number of studies indicate significant biological properties of individual sulfated polysaccharides, such as antiproliferative activity, which makes them a promising area for further research. In this study, [...] Read more.
Some marine and extremophilic microorganisms are capable of synthesizing sulfated polysaccharides with a unique structure. A number of studies indicate significant biological properties of individual sulfated polysaccharides, such as antiproliferative activity, which makes them a promising area for further research. In this study, the capsular polysaccharide (CPS) was obtained from the bacterium Cobetia marina KMM 1449, isolated from a marine sediment sample collected along the shore of the Sea of Japan. The CPS was isolated by saline solution, purified by a series of chromatographic procedures, and studied by chemical methods along with 1D and 2D 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. The following new structure of the CPS from C. marina KMM 1449 was established and consisted of sulfated and simultaneously phosphorylated disaccharide repeating units: →4)-α-L-Rhap2S-(1→3)-β-D-Manp6PGro-(1→. To elucidate the genetic basis of the CPS biosynthesis, the whole genomic sequence of C. marina KMM 1449 was obtained. The CPS biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) of about 70 genes composes four regions encoding nucleotide sugar biosynthesis (dTDP-Rha and GDP-Man), assembly (GTs genes), translocation (ABC transporter genes), sulfation (PAPS biosynthesis and sulfotransferase genes) and lipid carrier biosynthesis (wcb operon). Comparative analysis of the CPS BGCs from available Cobetia genomes showed the presence of KMM 1449-like CPS BGC among strains of all three Cobetia species. The study of new natural sulfated polysaccharides, as well as the elucidation of the pathways of their biosynthesis, provides the basis for the development of potential anticancer drugs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Exopolysaccharide Isolated from Marine Microorganisms)
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15 pages, 646 KiB  
Review
Antioxidant Systems in Extremophile Marine Fish Species
by Rigers Bakiu, Elisabetta Piva, Sara Pacchini and Gianfranco Santovito
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2024, 12(8), 1280; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse12081280 - 30 Jul 2024
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2028
Abstract
Living in extreme environments, marine organisms face constant exposure to a range of stressors, such as high radiation levels, fluctuations in temperature, and oxidative stress. Understanding extremophile fishes is crucial because it gives us valuable insights into the biochemical, physiological, and developmental processes [...] Read more.
Living in extreme environments, marine organisms face constant exposure to a range of stressors, such as high radiation levels, fluctuations in temperature, and oxidative stress. Understanding extremophile fishes is crucial because it gives us valuable insights into the biochemical, physiological, and developmental processes that govern life, by observing how they operate under natural stressors. Among the most fascinating adaptations is the existence of specialised enzymes and compounds that function as potent antioxidants, successfully counteracting reactive oxygen species’ deleterious effects. In this review, we analysed the findings from several studies on Antarctic and deep-sea fish species, while highlighting the environmental stressors effects toward the antioxidant system. The antioxidant defences of the considered extremophile fishes have been extensively studied, but there is still much to learn to fully understand this complex system, while the relative research is still ongoing. Consequently, we are properly anticipating further advancements over the next few years about our understanding of crucial physiological processes that support cell survival. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Marine Environmental Science)
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26 pages, 1359 KiB  
Review
Marine Science Can Contribute to the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Life
by Jacopo Aguzzi, Javier Cuadros, Lewis Dartnell, Corrado Costa, Simona Violino, Loredana Canfora, Roberto Danovaro, Nathan Jack Robinson, Donato Giovannelli, Sascha Flögel, Sergio Stefanni, Damianos Chatzievangelou, Simone Marini, Giacomo Picardi and Bernard Foing
Life 2024, 14(6), 676; https://doi.org/10.3390/life14060676 - 24 May 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3634
Abstract
Life on our planet likely evolved in the ocean, and thus exo-oceans are key habitats to search for extraterrestrial life. We conducted a data-driven bibliographic survey on the astrobiology literature to identify emerging research trends with marine science for future synergies in the [...] Read more.
Life on our planet likely evolved in the ocean, and thus exo-oceans are key habitats to search for extraterrestrial life. We conducted a data-driven bibliographic survey on the astrobiology literature to identify emerging research trends with marine science for future synergies in the exploration for extraterrestrial life in exo-oceans. Based on search queries, we identified 2592 published items since 1963. The current literature falls into three major groups of terms focusing on (1) the search for life on Mars, (2) astrobiology within our Solar System with reference to icy moons and their exo-oceans, and (3) astronomical and biological parameters for planetary habitability. We also identified that the most prominent research keywords form three key-groups focusing on (1) using terrestrial environments as proxies for Martian environments, centred on extremophiles and biosignatures, (2) habitable zones outside of “Goldilocks” orbital ranges, centred on ice planets, and (3) the atmosphere, magnetic field, and geology in relation to planets’ habitable conditions, centred on water-based oceans. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Astrobiology)
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33 pages, 6114 KiB  
Article
Development of Biological Coating from Novel Halophilic Exopolysaccharide Exerting Shelf-Life-Prolonging and Biocontrol Actions for Post-Harvest Applications
by Chandni Upadhyaya, Hiren Patel, Ishita Patel, Parth Ahir and Trushit Upadhyaya
Molecules 2024, 29(3), 695; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29030695 - 2 Feb 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2151
Abstract
The literature presents the preserving effect of biological coatings developed from various microbial sources. However, the presented work exhibits its uniqueness in the utilization of halophilic exopolysaccharides as food coating material. Moreover, such extremophilic exopolysaccharides are more stable and economical production is possible. [...] Read more.
The literature presents the preserving effect of biological coatings developed from various microbial sources. However, the presented work exhibits its uniqueness in the utilization of halophilic exopolysaccharides as food coating material. Moreover, such extremophilic exopolysaccharides are more stable and economical production is possible. Consequently, the aim of the presented research was to develop a coating material from marine exopolysaccharide (EPS). The significant EPS producers having antagonistic attributes against selected phytopathogens were screened from different marine water and soil samples. TSIS01 isolate revealed the maximum antagonism well and EPS production was selected further and characterized as Bacillus tequilensis MS01 by 16S rRNA analysis. EPS production was optimized and deproteinized EPS was assessed for biophysical properties. High performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) analysis revealed that EPS was a heteropolymer of glucose, galactose, mannose, and glucuronic acid. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and UV-visible spectra validated the presence of determined sugars. It showed high stability at a wide range of temperatures, pH and incubation time, ≈1.63 × 106 Da molecular weight, intermediate solubility index (48.2 ± 3.12%), low water holding capacity (12.4 ± 1.93%), and pseudoplastic rheologic shear-thinning comparable to xanthan gum. It revealed antimicrobial potential against human pathogens and antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory potential. The biocontrol assay of EPS against phytopathogens revealed the highest activity against Alternaria solani. The EPS-coated and control tomato fruits were treated with A. solani suspension to check the % disease incidence, which revealed a significant (p < 0.001) decline compared to uncoated controls. Moreover, it revealed shelf-life prolonging action on tomatoes comparable to xanthan gum and higher than chitosan. Consequently, the presented marine EPS was elucidated as a potent coating material to mitigate post-harvest losses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polysaccharides: Isolations, Identifications and Applications)
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18 pages, 3333 KiB  
Article
Bioprospecting of a Thermostable L-Methioninase from Alcaligenes aquatilis BJ-1 in Agro-Industrial Waste
by Bhumi Javia, Megha Gadhvi, Suhas Vyas, Pravin Dudhagara, Douglas J. H. Shyu, Yih-Yuan Chen and Dushyant Dudhagara
Microbiol. Res. 2023, 14(3), 959-976; https://doi.org/10.3390/microbiolres14030066 - 27 Jul 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2578
Abstract
L-methioninase is an enzyme that has recently gained significant interest in the scientific community because of its potential as a targeted therapy for cancer. This study aims to isolate and identify extremophilic bacteria that could produce L-methioninase and to access the enzymatic potential [...] Read more.
L-methioninase is an enzyme that has recently gained significant interest in the scientific community because of its potential as a targeted therapy for cancer. This study aims to isolate and identify extremophilic bacteria that could produce L-methioninase and to access the enzymatic potential of isolated bacteria under stress conditions, specifically in agro-industrial waste. In this study, a rare marine bacterium, Alcaligenes aquatilis BJ-1, exhibited the highest specific activity of 4.61 U/mg at an optimum pH of 8.3. The L-methioninase was purified 4.3-fold and 7.15-fold by acetone precipitation and Sephadex G-100 gel filtration chromatography, which revealed a molecular weight of 46 kDa. In addition, agriculture waste materials such as cottonseed oil cake had the highest L-methioninase production. Moreover, A. aquatilis BJ-1 can tolerate and produce enzymes in the presence of 10% NaCl, 6% KCl, and 4% MgSO4. Similarly, substrates such as L-asparagine, L-glutamine, L-alanine, and L-tyrosine were found suitable to increase enzyme production. The strain produced L-methioninase in the presence of various heavy metals. Maximum enzyme activity was found in Zn2+ at 0.1% (2.52 U/mL), Li2+ at 0.03% (2.90 U/mL), and Ni2+ at 0.01% (2.78 U/mL), as compared to the control (2.23 U/mL) without metal. Enzyme production was also observed at a high temperature (60 °C), with the produced enzymes possessing antioxidant properties. In addition, no hemolytic activity was observed. The results indicate that A. aquatilis BJ-1 is an appropriate bacterium for metal bioremediation procedures in unfavorable circumstances. Full article
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19 pages, 1036 KiB  
Review
The Mystery of Piezophiles: Understudied Microorganisms from the Deep, Dark Subsurface
by Gabrielle Scheffer and Lisa M. Gieg
Microorganisms 2023, 11(7), 1629; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11071629 - 22 Jun 2023
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4847
Abstract
Microorganisms that can withstand high pressure within an environment are termed piezophiles. These organisms are considered extremophiles and inhabit the deep marine or terrestrial subsurface. Because these microorganisms are not easily accessed and require expensive sampling methods and laboratory instruments, advancements in this [...] Read more.
Microorganisms that can withstand high pressure within an environment are termed piezophiles. These organisms are considered extremophiles and inhabit the deep marine or terrestrial subsurface. Because these microorganisms are not easily accessed and require expensive sampling methods and laboratory instruments, advancements in this field have been limited compared to other extremophiles. This review summarizes the current knowledge on piezophiles, notably the cellular and physiological adaptations that such microorganisms possess to withstand and grow in high-pressure environments. Based on existing studies, organisms from both the deep marine and terrestrial subsurface show similar adaptations to high pressure, including increased motility, an increase of unsaturated bonds within the cell membrane lipids, upregulation of heat shock proteins, and differential gene-regulation systems. Notably, more adaptations have been identified within the deep marine subsurface organisms due to the relative paucity of studies performed on deep terrestrial subsurface environments. Nevertheless, similar adaptations have been found within piezophiles from both systems, and therefore the microbial biogeography concepts used to assess microbial dispersal and explore if similar organisms can be found throughout deep terrestrial environments are also briefly discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Latest Review Papers in Environmental Microbiology 2023)
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14 pages, 6069 KiB  
Article
Arsenic Adsorption and Toxicity Reduction of An Exopolysaccharide Produced by Bacillus licheniformis B3-15 of Shallow Hydrothermal Vent Origin
by Antonio Spanò, Vincenzo Zammuto, Angela Macrì, Eleonora Agostino, Marco Sebastiano Nicolò, Angela Scala, Domenico Trombetta, Antonella Smeriglio, Mariarosaria Ingegneri, Maria Teresa Caccamo, Salvatore Magazù, Miguel Martinez, Carla Geraldine Leon, Salvatore Pietro Paolo Guglielmino and Concetta Gugliandolo
J. Mar. Sci. Eng. 2023, 11(2), 325; https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse11020325 - 2 Feb 2023
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 2639
Abstract
Exopolysaccharide (EPS) production represents an adaptive strategy developed by extremophiles to cope with environmental stresses. The EPS-producing Bacillus licheniformis B3-15, of shallow marine vent origin (Vulcano Island, Italy), was previously reported as tolerant to arsenate (AsV). In this study, we evaluated: [...] Read more.
Exopolysaccharide (EPS) production represents an adaptive strategy developed by extremophiles to cope with environmental stresses. The EPS-producing Bacillus licheniformis B3-15, of shallow marine vent origin (Vulcano Island, Italy), was previously reported as tolerant to arsenate (AsV). In this study, we evaluated: (i) the increasing production of EPS by Bacillus licheniformis B3-15 in the novel SG17 medium; (ii) the arsenic absorption capacity of the EPS by mass spectroscopy; (iii) the functional groups of EPS interacting with As by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy; and (iv) the ability of EPS to prevent arsenic toxicity by the bioluminescent assay. The EPS yield (240 mg L−1) was 45% higher than previously reported. The EPS was mainly constituted of disaccharide repeating units with a manno-pyranosidic configuration and low protein content, attributed to the poly-gamma glutamic acid component as evidenced by NMR analysis. ATR-FTIR spectra indicated that the functional groups of the EPS (O–H, C=O, C–O and C=C and N–O) were involved in the adsorption of the arsenic cations, with greater interactions between EPS and arsenate (AsV) than arsenite (AsIII). Consequently, the EPS at increasing concentration (100 and 300 µg mL−1) adsorbed AsV more efficiently (20.5% and 34.5%) than AsIII (0.7% and 1.8%). The bioluminescence assay showed that the EPS was not toxic, and its addition reduced the toxicity of both As forms by more than twofold. The crude EPS B3-15 could be used in arsenic bioremediation as a possible eco-friendly alternative to other physical or chemical methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Section Chemical Oceanography)
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39 pages, 2583 KiB  
Review
Bacteria Associated with Benthic Invertebrates from Extreme Marine Environments: Promising but Underexplored Sources of Biotechnologically Relevant Molecules
by Angelina Lo Giudice and Carmen Rizzo
Mar. Drugs 2022, 20(10), 617; https://doi.org/10.3390/md20100617 - 29 Sep 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 5443
Abstract
Microbe–invertebrate associations, commonly occurring in nature, play a fundamental role in the life of symbionts, even in hostile habitats, assuming a key importance for both ecological and evolutionary studies and relevance in biotechnology. Extreme environments have emerged as a new frontier in natural [...] Read more.
Microbe–invertebrate associations, commonly occurring in nature, play a fundamental role in the life of symbionts, even in hostile habitats, assuming a key importance for both ecological and evolutionary studies and relevance in biotechnology. Extreme environments have emerged as a new frontier in natural product chemistry in the search for novel chemotypes of microbial origin with significant biological activities. However, to date, the main focus has been microbes from sediment and seawater, whereas those associated with biota have received significantly less attention. This review has been therefore conceived to summarize the main information on invertebrate–bacteria associations that are established in extreme marine environments. After a brief overview of currently known extreme marine environments and their main characteristics, a report on the associations between extremophilic microorganisms and macrobenthic organisms in such hostile habitats is provided. The second part of the review deals with biotechnologically relevant bioactive molecules involved in establishing and maintaining symbiotic associations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Marine Molecules Involved in Symbiosis as Potential New Natural Drugs)
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21 pages, 1218 KiB  
Review
Exopolysaccharides from Marine Microbes: Source, Structure and Application
by Mingxing Qi, Caijuan Zheng, Wenhui Wu, Guangli Yu and Peipei Wang
Mar. Drugs 2022, 20(8), 512; https://doi.org/10.3390/md20080512 - 12 Aug 2022
Cited by 49 | Viewed by 5746
Abstract
The unique living environment of marine microorganisms endows them with the potential to produce novel chemical compounds with various biological activities. Among them, the exopolysaccharides produced by marine microbes are an important factor for them to survive in these extreme environments. Up to [...] Read more.
The unique living environment of marine microorganisms endows them with the potential to produce novel chemical compounds with various biological activities. Among them, the exopolysaccharides produced by marine microbes are an important factor for them to survive in these extreme environments. Up to now, exopolysaccharides from marine microbes, especially from extremophiles, have attracted more and more attention due to their structural complexity, biodegradability, biological activities, and biocompatibility. With the development of culture and separation methods, an increasing number of novel exopolysaccharides are being found and investigated. Here, the source, structure and biological activities of exopolysaccharides, as well as their potential applications in environmental restoration fields of the last decade are summarized, indicating the commercial potential of these versatile EPS in different areas, such as food, cosmetic, and biomedical industries, and also in environmental remediation. Full article
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10 pages, 848 KiB  
Review
Sponge–Microbial Symbiosis and Marine Extremozymes: Current Issues and Prospects
by Praise Tochukwu Nnaji, H. Ruth Morse, Emmanuel Adukwu and Rachael U. Chidugu-Ogborigbo
Sustainability 2022, 14(12), 6984; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14126984 - 7 Jun 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2923
Abstract
Marine microorganisms have great potential for producing extremozymes. They enter useful relationships like many other organisms in the marine habitat. Sponge–microbial symbiosis enables both sponges and microorganisms to mutually benefit each other while performing their activities within the ecosystem. Sponges, because of their [...] Read more.
Marine microorganisms have great potential for producing extremozymes. They enter useful relationships like many other organisms in the marine habitat. Sponge–microbial symbiosis enables both sponges and microorganisms to mutually benefit each other while performing their activities within the ecosystem. Sponges, because of their nature as marine cosmopolitan benthic epifaunas and filter feeders, serve as a host for many extremophilic marine microorganisms. Potential extremozymes from microbial symbionts are largely dependent on their successful relationship. Extremozymes have found relevance in food processing, bioremediation, detergent, and drug production. Species diversity approach, industrial-scale bioremediation, integrative bioremediation software, government and industrial support are considered. The high cost of sampling, limited research outcomes, low species growth in synthetic media, laborious nature of metagenomics projects, difficulty in the development of synthetic medium, limited number of available experts, and technological knowhow are current challenges. The unique properties of marine extremozymes underpin their application in industry and biotechnological processes. There is therefore an urgent need for the development of cost-effective methods with government and industry support. Full article
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28 pages, 2567 KiB  
Review
Extremophilic Fungi from Marine Environments: Underexplored Sources of Antitumor, Anti-Infective and Other Biologically Active Agents
by Lesley-Ann Giddings and David J. Newman
Mar. Drugs 2022, 20(1), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/md20010062 - 10 Jan 2022
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 5931
Abstract
Marine environments are underexplored terrains containing fungi that produce a diversity of natural products given unique environmental pressures and nutrients. While bacteria are commonly the most studied microorganism for natural products in the marine world, marine fungi are also abundant but remain an [...] Read more.
Marine environments are underexplored terrains containing fungi that produce a diversity of natural products given unique environmental pressures and nutrients. While bacteria are commonly the most studied microorganism for natural products in the marine world, marine fungi are also abundant but remain an untapped source of bioactive metabolites. Given that their terrestrial counterparts have been a source of many blockbuster antitumor agents and anti-infectives, including camptothecin, the penicillins, and cyclosporin A, marine fungi also have the potential to produce new chemical scaffolds as leads to potential drugs. Fungi are more phylogenetically diverse than bacteria and have larger genomes that contain many silent biosynthetic gene clusters involved in making bioactive compounds. However, less than 5% of all known fungi have been cultivated under standard laboratory conditions. While the number of reported natural products from marine fungi is steadily increasing, their number is still significantly lower compared to those reported from their bacterial counterparts. Herein, we discuss many varied cytotoxic and anti-infective fungal metabolites isolated from extreme marine environments, including symbiotic associations as well as extreme pressures, temperatures, salinity, and light. We also discuss cultivation strategies that can be used to produce new bioactive metabolites or increase their production. This review presents a large number of reported structures though, at times, only a few of a large number of related structures are shown. Full article
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18 pages, 1781 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances in Sorbicillinoids from Fungi and Their Bioactivities (Covering 2016–2021)
by Xuwen Hou, Xuping Zhang, Mengyao Xue, Zhitong Zhao, Huizhen Zhang, Dan Xu, Daowan Lai and Ligang Zhou
J. Fungi 2022, 8(1), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/jof8010062 - 7 Jan 2022
Cited by 37 | Viewed by 3977
Abstract
Sorbicillinoids are a family of hexaketide metabolites with a characteristic sorbyl side chain residue. Sixty-nine sorbicillinoids from fungi, newly identified from 2016 to 2021, are summarized in this review, including their structures and bioactivities. They are classified into monomeric, dimeric, trimeric, and hybrid [...] Read more.
Sorbicillinoids are a family of hexaketide metabolites with a characteristic sorbyl side chain residue. Sixty-nine sorbicillinoids from fungi, newly identified from 2016 to 2021, are summarized in this review, including their structures and bioactivities. They are classified into monomeric, dimeric, trimeric, and hybrid sorbicillinoids according to their basic structural features, with the main groups comprising both monomeric and dimeric sorbicillinoids. Some of the identified sorbicillinoids have special structures such as ustilobisorbicillinol A, and sorbicillasins A and B. The majority of sorbicillinoids have been reported from fungi genera such as Acremonium, Penicillium, Trichoderma, and Ustilaginoidea, with some sorbicillinoids exhibiting cytotoxic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, phytotoxic, and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities. In recent years, marine-derived, extremophilic, plant endophytic, and phytopathogenic fungi have emerged as important resources for diverse sorbicillinoids with unique skeletons. The recently revealed biological activities of sorbicillinoids discovered before 2016 are also described in this review. Full article
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13 pages, 1716 KiB  
Article
Shallow Hydrothermal Vent Bacteria and Their Secondary Metabolites with a Particular Focus on Bacillus
by Revathi Gurunathan, Arthur James Rathinam, Jiang-Shiou Hwang and Hans-Uwe Dahms
Mar. Drugs 2021, 19(12), 681; https://doi.org/10.3390/md19120681 - 29 Nov 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3912
Abstract
Extreme environments are hostile for most organisms, but such habitats represent suitable settings to be inhabited by specialized microorganisms. A marine shallow-water hydrothermal vent field is located offshore in northeast Taiwan, near the shallow shore of the southeast of Kueishantao Island (121°55′ E, [...] Read more.
Extreme environments are hostile for most organisms, but such habitats represent suitable settings to be inhabited by specialized microorganisms. A marine shallow-water hydrothermal vent field is located offshore in northeast Taiwan, near the shallow shore of the southeast of Kueishantao Island (121°55′ E, 24°50′ N). Research on extremophilic microorganisms makes use of the biotechnological potential associated with such microorganisms and their cellular products. With the notion that extremophiles are capable of surviving in extreme environments, it is assumed that their metabolites are adapted to function optimally under such conditions. As extremophiles, they need specific culture conditions, and only a fraction of species from the original samples are recovered in culture. We used different non-selective and selective media to isolate bacterial species associated with the hydrothermal vent crab Xenograpsus testudinatus and the sediments of its habitat. The highest number of colonies was obtained from Zobell marine agar plates with an overall number of 29 genetically distinct isolates. 16sRNA gene sequencing using the Sanger sequencing method revealed that most of the bacterial species belonged to the phylum Firmicutes and the class Bacilli. The present study indicates that hydrothermal vent bacteria and their secondary metabolites may play an important role for the reconstruction of the evolutionary history of the phylum Procaryota. Full article
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19 pages, 3834 KiB  
Review
Plastic Degradation by Extremophilic Bacteria
by Nikolina Atanasova, Stoyanka Stoitsova, Tsvetelina Paunova-Krasteva and Margarita Kambourova
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(11), 5610; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22115610 - 25 May 2021
Cited by 129 | Viewed by 19612
Abstract
Intensive exploitation, poor recycling, low repeatable use, and unusual resistance of plastics to environmental and microbiological action result in accumulation of huge waste amounts in terrestrial and marine environments, causing enormous hazard for human and animal life. In the last decades, much scientific [...] Read more.
Intensive exploitation, poor recycling, low repeatable use, and unusual resistance of plastics to environmental and microbiological action result in accumulation of huge waste amounts in terrestrial and marine environments, causing enormous hazard for human and animal life. In the last decades, much scientific interest has been focused on plastic biodegradation. Due to the comparatively short evolutionary period of their appearance in nature, sufficiently effective enzymes for their biodegradation are not available. Plastics are designed for use in conditions typical for human activity, and their physicochemical properties roughly change at extreme environmental parameters like low temperatures, salt, or low or high pH that are typical for the life of extremophilic microorganisms and the activity of their enzymes. This review represents a first attempt to summarize the extraordinarily limited information on biodegradation of conventional synthetic plastics by thermophilic, alkaliphilic, halophilic, and psychrophilic bacteria in natural environments and laboratory conditions. Most of the available data was reported in the last several years and concerns moderate extremophiles. Two main questions are highlighted in it: which extremophilic bacteria and their enzymes are reported to be involved in the degradation of different synthetic plastics, and what could be the impact of extremophiles in future technologies for resolving of pollution problems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Collection Frontiers in Polymeric Materials)
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22 pages, 2079 KiB  
Article
Global Transcriptomic Responses of Roseithermus sacchariphilus Strain RA in Media Supplemented with Beechwood Xylan
by Kok Jun Liew, Neil C. Bruce, Rajesh Kumar Sani, Chun Shiong Chong, Amira Suriaty Yaakop, Mohd Shahir Shamsir and Kian Mau Goh
Microorganisms 2020, 8(7), 976; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8070976 - 29 Jun 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2958
Abstract
The majority of the members in order Rhodothermales are underexplored prokaryotic extremophiles. Roseithermus, a new genus within Rhodothermales, was first described in 2019. Roseithermus sacchariphilus is the only species in this genus. The current report aims to evaluate the transcriptomic responses [...] Read more.
The majority of the members in order Rhodothermales are underexplored prokaryotic extremophiles. Roseithermus, a new genus within Rhodothermales, was first described in 2019. Roseithermus sacchariphilus is the only species in this genus. The current report aims to evaluate the transcriptomic responses of R. sacchariphilus strain RA when cultivated on beechwood xylan. Strain RA doubled its growth in Marine Broth (MB) containing xylan compared to Marine Broth (MB) alone. Strain RA harbors 54 potential glycosyl hydrolases (GHs) that are affiliated with 30 families, including cellulases (families GH 3, 5, 9, and 44) and hemicellulases (GH 2, 10, 16, 29, 31,43, 51, 53, 67, 78, 92, 106, 113, 130, and 154). The majority of these GHs were upregulated when the cells were grown in MB containing xylan medium and enzymatic activities for xylanase, endoglucanase, β-xylosidase, and β-glucosidase were elevated. Interestingly, with the introduction of xylan, five out of six cellulolytic genes were upregulated. Furthermore, approximately 1122 genes equivalent to one-third of the total genes for strain RA were upregulated. These upregulated genes were mostly involved in transportation, chemotaxis, and membrane components synthesis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extremophiles and Extremozymes in Academia and Industries)
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