ABSTRACT
Marine sponges (phylum Porifera) are well known to harbour a complex and diverse bacterial community. Some of these sponge-associated bacteria have been shown to be the real producers of secondary metabolites with a wide range of activities from antimicrobials to anticancer agents. Previously, we revealed that the strain Pseudomonas fluorescens H41 isolated from the sponge Haliclona sp. (collected at the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) showed a strong antimicrobial activity against clinical and marine bacteria. Thus, in this study the genes involved in the antimicrobial activity of P. fluorescens H41 were identified. To this end, a library of mutants was generated via miniTnphoA3 transposon mutagenesis and the resulting clones were characterized for their antimicrobial activity. It was demonstrated that genes involved in the biosynthesis of the pyoverdine siderophore are related to the inhibitory activity of P. fluorescens H41. Therefore, this strain might play an important role in the biocontrol of the host sponge.
Subject(s)
Anti-Bacterial Agents/metabolism , Haliclona/microbiology , Metabolic Networks and Pathways/genetics , Mutagenesis, Insertional , Pseudomonas fluorescens/genetics , Pseudomonas fluorescens/metabolism , Animals , Brazil , DNA Transposable Elements , Oligopeptides/metabolismABSTRACT
Cocoa bean fermentation is a spontaneous process involving a succession of microbial activities, starting with yeasts, followed by lactic acid bacteria and acetic acid bacteria. So far, all microbiological studies about cocoa bean fermentation were based on culture-dependent (isolation, cultivation, and identification), or, more recently, culture-independent (PCR-DGGE, or polymerase chain reaction denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis) methods. Using a metagenomic approach, total DNA was extracted from heap and box fermentations at different time points and from different locations (Ghana and Brazil, respectively) to generate a 16 S rDNA clone library that was sequenced. The sequencing data revealed a low bacterial diversity in the fermentation samples and were in accordance with the results obtained through culture-dependent and a second, culture-independent analysis (PCR-DGGE), suggesting that almost all bacteria involved in the fermentation process are cultivable. One exception was the identification by 16 S rDNA library sequencing of Gluconacetobacter species of acetic acid bacteria that were not detected by the two other approaches. The presence of Enterobacteriaceae related to Erwinia/Pantoea/Tatumella, as revealed by 16 S rDNA library sequencing, suggests an impact of these bacteria on fermentation.
Subject(s)
Bacteria/isolation & purification , Bacteria/metabolism , Biodiversity , Cacao/microbiology , Fermentation , Bacteria/genetics , Brazil , DNA Fingerprinting , DNA, Bacterial/genetics , Fruit/microbiology , Gene Library , Ghana , RNA, Ribosomal, 16S/geneticsABSTRACT
We hereby present the complete sequence and annotation of pRG930cm, a spectinomycin/streptomycin/chloramphenicol-resistant cosmid vector. pRG930cm (17,256 bp; GenBank Accession No.: FM174471) has a broad host range, and is stably maintained by a number of Gram-negative bacteria including Pseudomonas spp, Escherichia coli, Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Azorhizobium caulinodans ORS571. pRG930cm is already widely used and its sequence will aid efficient construction and analysis of cosmid libraries.