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Massot F, Bernard N, Alvarez LMM, Martorell MM, Mac Cormack WP, Ruberto LAM. Microbial associations for bioremediation. What does "microbial consortia" mean? Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2022; 106:2283-2297. [PMID: 35294589 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-022-11864-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Revised: 02/23/2022] [Accepted: 02/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Microbial associations arise as useful tools in several biotechnological processes. Among them, bioremediation of contaminated environments usually takes advantage of these microbial associations. Despite being frequently used, these associations are indicated using a variety of expressions, showing a lack of consensus by specialists in the field. The main idea of this work is to analyze the variety of microbial associations referred to as "microbial consortia" (MC) in the context of pollutants biodegradation and bioremediation. To do that, we summarize the origin of the term pointing out the features that an MC is expected to meet, according to the opinion of several authors. An analysis of related bibliography was done seeking criteria to rationalize and classify MC in the context of bioremediation. We identify that the microbe's origin and the level of human intervention are usually considered as a category to classify them as natural microbial consortia (NMC), artificial microbial consortia (AMC), and synthetic microbial consortia (SMC). In this sense, NMC are those associations composed by microorganisms obtained from a single source while AMC members come from different sources. SMC are a class of AMC in which microbial composition is defined to accomplish a certain specific task. We propose that the effective or potential existence of the interaction among MC members in the source material should be considered as a category in the classification as well, in combination with the origin of the source and level of intervention. Cross-kingdom MC and new developments were also considered. Finally, the existence of grey zones in the limits between each proposed microbial consortia category is addressed. KEY POINTS: • Microbial consortia for bioremediation can be obtained through different methods. • The use of the term "microbial consortia" is unclear in the specialized literature. • We propose a simplified classification for microbial consortia for bioremediation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco Massot
- Instituto Antártico Argentino (IAA), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires (FFyB UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Nathalie Bernard
- Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires (FFyB UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Lucas M Martinez Alvarez
- Instituto Antártico Argentino (IAA), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires (FFyB UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - María M Martorell
- Instituto Antártico Argentino (IAA), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires (FFyB UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Walter P Mac Cormack
- Instituto Antártico Argentino (IAA), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Lucas A M Ruberto
- Instituto Antártico Argentino (IAA), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Instituto de Nanobiotecnología (NANOBIOTEC, UBA-CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires (FFyB UBA), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Nanjani S, Paul D, Keharia H. Genome analysis to decipher syntrophy in the bacterial consortium 'SCP' for azo dye degradation. BMC Microbiol 2021; 21:177. [PMID: 34116639 PMCID: PMC8194134 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-021-02236-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Background A bacterial consortium SCP comprising three bacterial members, viz. Stenotrophomonas acidaminiphila APG1, Pseudomonas stutzeri APG2 and Cellulomonas sp. APG4 was developed for degradation of the mono-azo dye, Reactive Blue 28. The genomic analysis of each member of the SCP consortium was done to elucidate the catabolic potential and role of the individual organism in dye degradation. Results The genes for glycerol utilization were detected in the genomes of APG2 and APG4, which corroborated with their ability to grow on a minimal medium containing glycerol as the sole co-substrate. The genes for azoreductase were identified in the genomes of APG2 and APG4, while no such trait could be determined in APG1. In addition to co-substrate oxidation and dye reduction, several other cellular functions like chemotaxis, signal transduction, stress-tolerance, repair mechanisms, aromatic degradation, and copper tolerance associated with dye degradation were also annotated. A model for azo dye degradation is postulated, representing the predominant role of APG4 and APG2 in dye metabolism while suggesting an accessory role of APG1. Conclusions This exploratory study is the first-ever attempt to divulge the genetic basis of azo-dye co-metabolism by cross-genome comparisons and can be harnessed as an example for demonstrating microbial syntrophy. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12866-021-02236-9.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandhya Nanjani
- Post Graduate Department of Biosciences, UGC Centre of Advanced Study, Sardar Patel University, Satellite Campus, Vadtal Road, Bakrol, Anand, Gujarat, 388 315, India
| | - Dhiraj Paul
- Microbial Culture Collection, National Centre for Microbial Resource, National Centre for Cell Science, Savitribai Phule University of Pune Campus, Pune, India
| | - Hareshkumar Keharia
- Post Graduate Department of Biosciences, UGC Centre of Advanced Study, Sardar Patel University, Satellite Campus, Vadtal Road, Bakrol, Anand, Gujarat, 388 315, India.
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Chang CY, Osborne ML, Bajic D, Sanchez A. Artificially selecting bacterial communities using propagule strategies. Evolution 2020; 74:2392-2403. [PMID: 32888315 PMCID: PMC7942404 DOI: 10.1111/evo.14092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Revised: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 08/29/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Artificial selection is a promising approach to manipulate microbial communities. Here, we report the outcome of two artificial selection experiments at the microbial community level. Both used "propagule" selection strategies, whereby the best-performing communities are used as the inocula to form a new generation of communities. Both experiments were contrasted to a random selection control. The first experiment used a defined set of strains as the starting inoculum, and the function under selection was the amylolytic activity of the consortia. The second experiment used multiple soil communities as the starting inocula, and the function under selection was the communities' cross-feeding potential. In both experiments, the selected communities reached a higher mean function than the control. In the first experiment, this was caused by a decline in function of the control, rather than an improvement of the selected line. In the second experiment, this response was fueled by the large initial variance in function across communities, and stopped when the top-performing community "fixed" in the metacommunity. Our results are in agreement with basic expectations from breeding theory, pointing to some of the limitations of community-level selection experiments that can inform the design of future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang-Yu Chang
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,Microbial Sciences Institute. Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Melisa L. Osborne
- The Rowland Institute at Harvard, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Graduate Program in Bioinformatics and Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Djordje Bajic
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,Microbial Sciences Institute. Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Alvaro Sanchez
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,Microbial Sciences Institute. Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.,The Rowland Institute at Harvard, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Corresponding author:
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Araújo WJ, Oliveira JS, Araújo SCS, Minnicelli CF, Silva-Portela RCB, da Fonseca MMB, Freitas JF, Silva-Barbalho KK, Napp AP, Pereira JES, Peralba MCR, Passaglia LMP, Vainstein MH, Agnez-Lima LF. Microbial Culture in Minimal Medium With Oil Favors Enrichment of Biosurfactant Producing Genes. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:962. [PMID: 32850771 PMCID: PMC7431673 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.00962] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The waste produced by petrochemical industries has a significant environmental impact. Biotechnological approaches offer promising alternatives for waste treatment in a sustainable and environment-friendly manner. Microbial consortia potentially clean up the wastes through degradation of hydrocarbons using biosurfactants as adjuvants. In this work, microbial consortia were obtained from a production water (PW) sample from a Brazilian oil reservoir using enrichment and selection approaches in the presence of oil as carbon source. A consortium was obtained using Bushnell-Haas (BH) mineral medium with petroleum. In parallel, another consortium was obtained in yeast extract peptone dextrose (YPD)-rich medium and was subsequently compared to the BH mineral medium with petroleum. Metagenomic sequencing of these microbial communities showed that the BH consortium was less diverse and predominantly composed of Brevibacillus genus members, while the YPD consortium was taxonomically more diverse. Functional annotation revealed that the BH consortium was enriched with genes involved in biosurfactant synthesis, while the YPD consortium presented higher abundance of hydrocarbon degradation genes. The comparison of these two consortia against consortia available in public databases confirmed the enrichment of biosurfactant genes in the BH consortium. Functional assays showed that the BH consortium exhibits high cellular hydrophobicity and formation of stable emulsions, suggesting that oil uptake by microorganisms might be favored by biosurfactants. In contrast, the YPD consortium was more efficient than the BH consortium in reducing interfacial tension. Despite the genetic differences between the consortia, analysis by a gas chromatography-flame ionization detector showed few significant differences regarding the hydrocarbon degradation rates. Specifically, the YPD consortium presented higher degradation rates of C12 to C14 alkanes, while the BH consortium showed a significant increase in the degradation of some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These data suggest that the enrichment of biosurfactant genes in the BH consortium could promote efficient hydrocarbon degradation, despite its lower taxonomical diversity compared to the consortium enriched in YPD medium. Together, these results showed that cultivation in a minimal medium supplemented with oil was an efficient strategy in selecting biosurfactant-producing microorganisms and highlighted the biotechnological potential of these bacterial consortia in waste treatment and bioremediation of impacted areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- W J Araújo
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - J S Oliveira
- INESC-ID/IST - Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores/Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - S C S Araújo
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - C F Minnicelli
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - R C B Silva-Portela
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - M M B da Fonseca
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - J F Freitas
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - K K Silva-Barbalho
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
| | - A P Napp
- Laboratório de Fungos de Importância Médica e Biotecnológica, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - J E S Pereira
- Laboratório de Fungos de Importância Médica e Biotecnológica, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - M C R Peralba
- Laboratório de Química Analítica e Ambiental, Departamento de Química, Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - L M P Passaglia
- Laboratório de Genética Molecular Vegetal, Departamento de Genética, Instituto de Biociência, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - M H Vainstein
- Laboratório de Fungos de Importância Médica e Biotecnológica, Centro de Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - L F Agnez-Lima
- Laboratório de Biologia Molecular e Genômica, Departamento de Biologia Celular e Genética, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazi
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