Biodegradation of a Complex Phenolic Industrial Stream by Bacterial Strains Isolated from Industrial Wastewaters

Molecular and metabolomic tools were used to design and understand the biodegradation of phenolic compounds in real industrial streams. Bacterial species were isolated from an industrial wastewater treatment plant of a phenol production factory and identified using molecular techniques. Next, the biodegradation potential of the most promising strains was analyzed in the presence of a phenolic industrial by-product containing phenol, alfa-methylstyrene, acetophenone, 2-cumylphenol, and 4-cumylphenol. A bacterial consortium comprising Pseudomonas and Alcaligenes species was assessed for its ability to degrade phenolic compounds from the phenolic industrial stream (PS). The consortium adapted itself to the increasing levels of phenolic compounds, roughly up to 1750 ppm of PS; thus, becoming resistant to them. In addition, the consortium exhibited the ability to grow in the presence of PS in repeated batch mode processes. Results from untargeted metabolomic analysis of the culture medium in the presence of PS suggested that bacteria transformed the toxic phenolic compounds into less harmful molecules as a survival mechanism. Overall, the study demonstrates the usefulness of massive sequencing and metabolomic tools in constructing bacterial consortia that can efficiently biodegrade complex PS. Furthermore, it improves our understanding of their biodegradation capabilities.

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Establishing and Optimizing a Bacterial Consortia for Effective Biodegradation of Petroleum Contaminants: Advancing Classical Microbiology via Experimental and Mathematical Approach

Water ◽

10.3390/w13223311 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (22) ◽

pp. 3311

Author(s):

Baichun Wu ◽

Jingmin Deng ◽

Hao Niu ◽

Jiahao Liang ◽

Muhammad Arslan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Partial Correlation ◽

High Efficiency ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

Rhodococcus Erythropolis ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Bacterial Strains ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Orthogonal Experiments ◽

Petroleum Contaminants ◽

Different Strains

In classical microbiology, developing a high-efficiency bacterial consortium is a great challenge for faster biodegradation of petroleum contaminants. In this study, a systematic experimental and mathematical procedure was adopted to establish a bacterial consortium for the effective biodegradation of heavy oil constituents. A total of 27 bacterial consortia were established as per orthogonal experiments, using 8 petroleum-degrading bacterial strains. These bacteria were closer phylogenetic relatives of Brevundimonas sp. Tibet-IX23 (Y1), Bacillus firmus YHSA15, B. cereus MTCC 9817, B. aquimaris AT8 (Y2, Y6 and Y7), Pseudomonas alcaligenes NBRC (Y3), Microbacterium oxydans CV8.4 (Y4), Rhodococcus erythropolis SBUG 2052 (Y5), and Planococcus sp. Tibet-IX21 (Y8), and were used in different combinations. Partial correlation analysis and a general linear model hereafter were applied to investigate interspecific relationships among different strains and consortia. The Y1 bacterial species showed a remarkable synergy, whereas Y3, Y4, and Y6 displayed a strong antagonism in all consortia. Inoculation ratios of different strains significantly influenced biodegradation. An optimal consortium was constructed with Y1, Y2, Y5, Y7, and Y8, which revealed maximum degradation of 11.238 mg/mL OD600 for oil contaminants. This study provides a line of evidence that a functional consortium can be established by mathematical models for improved bioremediation of petroleum-contaminated environment.

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Raw Cow Milk Bacterial Consortium as Bioindicator of Circulating Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR)

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani10122378 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 2378

Author(s):

Cristian Piras ◽

Viviana Greco ◽

Enrico Gugliandolo ◽

Alessio Soggiu ◽

Bruno Tilocca ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ecological Niche ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

Raw Milk ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Cow Milk ◽

Milk Analysis ◽

Animal Products ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Expression Of Genes ◽

Ecological Pressure

The environment, including animals and animal products, is colonized by bacterial species that are typical and specific of every different ecological niche. Natural and human-related ecological pressure promotes the selection and expression of genes related to antimicrobial resistance (AMR). These genes might be present in a bacterial consortium but might not necessarily be expressed. Their expression could be induced by the presence of antimicrobial compounds that could originate from a given ecological niche or from human activity. In this work, we applied (meta)proteomics analysis of bacterial compartment of raw milk in order to obtain a method that provides a measurement of circulating AMR involved proteins and gathers information about the whole bacterial composition. Results from milk analysis revealed the presence of 29 proteins/proteoforms linked to AMR. The detection of mainly β-lactamases suggests the possibility of using the milk microbiome as a bioindicator for the investigation of AMR. Moreover, it was possible to achieve a culture-free qualitative and functional analysis of raw milk bacterial consortia.

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Simultaneous Bioremediation of Phenol and Cr (VI) from Tannery Wastewater Using Bacterial Consortium

International Journal of Applied Sciences and Biotechnology ◽

10.3126/ijasbt.v3i1.11889 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 50-55 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Amrik Bhattacharya ◽

Anshu Gupta ◽

Amarjeet Kaur ◽

Darshan Malik

Keyword(s):

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Agitation Speed ◽

Tannery Wastewater ◽

Tannery Effluent ◽

Simultaneous Removal ◽

Bacterial Strains ◽

Static Mode ◽

Simultaneous Reduction ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Removal Of Contaminants

In the present study a consortium of four naturally isolated bacterial strains was evaluated as remediation tool for simultaneous removal ofphenol and Cr (VI) from tannery effluent. Application of bacterial consortia to effluent (pH 4.6) resulted in 100 and 78% removal of initial 47mg L-1 phenol and 16 mg L-1 Cr (VI), respectively at 96 h of treatment. The consortium was also active in removal of contaminants with lowerremoval rate in presence of extraneous higher concentrations of both phenol and Cr (VI). Treatment in static mode also resulted in removal ofpollutants, however with increase in agitation speed simultaneous reduction of contaminants becomes faster. Overall it can be inferred fromthe study that the above formulated bacterial consortium could effectively be used for treatment of phenol and Cr (VI) laden tannery and otherindustrial effluents.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijasbt.v3i1.11889 Int J Appl Sci Biotechnol, Vol. 3(1): 50-55

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Engineered Interspecies Amino Acid Cross-Feeding Increases Population Evenness in a Synthetic Bacterial Consortium

mSystems ◽

10.1128/msystems.00352-19 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4 (4) ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Marika Ziesack ◽

Travis Gibson ◽

John K. W. Oliver ◽

Andrew M. Shumaker ◽

Bryan B. Hsu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Bacterial Species ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Microbial Interactions ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Microbial Consortia ◽

Positive Interactions ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Health And Disease ◽

Antagonistic Interactions

ABSTRACT In nature, microbes interact antagonistically, neutrally, or beneficially. To shed light on the effects of positive interactions in microbial consortia, we introduced metabolic dependencies and metabolite overproduction into four bacterial species. While antagonistic interactions govern the wild-type consortium behavior, the genetic modifications alleviated antagonistic interactions and resulted in beneficial interactions. Engineered cross-feeding increased population evenness, a component of ecological diversity, in different environments, including in a more complex gnotobiotic mouse gut environment. Our findings suggest that metabolite cross-feeding could be used as a tool for intentionally shaping microbial consortia in complex environments. IMPORTANCE Microbial communities are ubiquitous in nature. Bacterial consortia live in and on our body and in our environment, and more recently, biotechnology is applying microbial consortia for bioproduction. As part of our body, bacterial consortia influence us in health and disease. Microbial consortium function is determined by its composition, which in turn is driven by the interactions between species. Further understanding of microbial interactions will help us in deciphering how consortia function in complex environments and may enable us to modify microbial consortia for health and environmental benefits.

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Combining Culture-Dependent and Independent Approaches for the Optimization of Epoxiconazole and Fludioxonil-Degrading Bacterial Consortia

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms9102109 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (10) ◽

pp. 2109

Author(s):

Diogo Alexandrino ◽

Ana Mucha ◽

Maria Paola Tomasino ◽

C. Marisa R. Almeida ◽

Maria Carvalho

Keyword(s):

Agricultural Soil ◽

Enrichment Culture ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

The Other ◽

Microbial Consortia ◽

Bacterial Isolates ◽

Bacterial Strains ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

First Time ◽

Culture Dependent

Epoxiconazole (EPO) and fludioxonil (FLU) are two widely used fluorinated pesticides known to be highly persistent and with high ecotoxicological potential, turning them into pollutants of concern. This work aimed to optimize two degrading bacterial consortia, previously obtained from an agricultural soil through enrichment with EPO and FLU, by characterizing the contribution of their corresponding bacterial isolates to the biodegradation of these pesticides using both culture-dependent and independent methodologies. Results showed that a co-culture of the strains Hydrogenophaga eletricum 5AE and Methylobacillus sp. 8AE was the most efficient in biodegrading EPO, being able to defluorinate ca. 80% of this pesticide in 28 days. This catabolic performance is likely the result of a commensalistic cooperation, in which H. eletricum may be the defluorinating strain and Methylobacillus sp. may assume an accessory, yet pivotal, catabolic role. Furthermore, 16S rRNA metabarcoding analysis revealed that these strains represent a minority in their original consortium, showing that the biodegradation of EPO can be driven by less abundant phylotypes in the community. On the other hand, none of the tested combinations of bacterial strains showed potential to biodegrade FLU, indicating that the key degrading strains were not successfully isolated from the original enrichment culture. Overall, this work shows, for the first time, the direct involvement of two bacterial species, namely H. eletricum and Methylobacillus sp., in the biodegradation of EPO, while also offering insight on how they might cooperate to accomplish this process. Moreover, the importance of adequate culture-dependent approaches in the engineering of microbial consortia for bioremediation purposes is also emphasized.

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Engineered inter-species amino acid cross-feeding increases population evenness in a synthetic bacterial consortium

10.1101/426171 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Marika Ziesack ◽

Travis Gibson ◽

John K.W. Oliver ◽

Andrew M. Shumaker ◽

Bryan B. Hsu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Bacterial Species ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Microbial Interactions ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Microbial Consortia ◽

Positive Interactions ◽

Complex Environments ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Health And Disease ◽

Antagonistic Interactions

AbstractIn nature, microbes interact antagonistically, neutrally or beneficially. To shed light on the effects of positive interactions in microbial consortia we introduced metabolic dependencies and metabolite overproduction into four bacterial species. While antagonistic interactions govern the wildtype consortium behavior, the genetic modifications alleviated antagonistic interactions and resulted in beneficial interactions. Engineered cross-feeding increased population evenness, a component of ecological diversity, in different environments including in a more complex gnotobiotic mouse gut environment. Our findings suggest that metabolite cross-feeding could be used as a tool for intentionally shaping microbial consortia in complex environments.ImportanceMicrobial communities are ubiquitous in nature. Bacterial consortia live in and on our body and in our environment and more recently, biotechnology is applying microbial consortia for bioproduction. As part of our body, bacterial consortia influence us in health and disease. Microbial consortia function is determined by its composition, which in turn is driven by the interactions between species. Further understanding of microbial interactions will help us deciphering how consortia function in complex environments and may enable us to modify microbial consortia for health and environmental benefits.

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Growth characteristics and copper accumulation of bacterial consortium Acinetobacter sp. and Cupriavidus sp. isolated from a wastewater treatment plant

Biodiversitas Journal of Biological Diversity ◽

10.13057/biodiv/d190541 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 19 (5) ◽

pp. 1884-1890

Author(s):

WAHYU IRAWATI ◽

TRIWIBOWO YUWONO ◽

NOMMENSEN PANGIHUTAN OMPUSUNGGU

Keyword(s):

Wastewater Treatment ◽

Wastewater Treatment Plant ◽

Treatment Plant ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Growth Characteristics ◽

Copper Accumulation ◽

Indigenous Bacteria ◽

Enrichment Medium ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Acinetobacter Sp

Irawati W, Yuwono T, Ompusunggu NP. 2018. Growth characteristics and copper accumulation of bacterial consortium Acinetobacter sp. and Cupriavidus sp. isolated from a wastewater treatment plant. Biodiversitas 19: 1884-1890. Pollutant treatments are part of the human calling, as the crown of creation, to subdue, preserve, and cultivate the earth in bringing goodness for all creatures. Bioremediation of copper using indigenous bacteria is well known as the best water treatment for polluted environment recovery. Acinetobacter sp. and Cupriavidus sp. are indigenous bacteria isolated from industrial sewage in Indonesia. Bioremediation in environment is a process involving community of bacterial consortium for heavy metal or any other polluting materials accumulation. The purposes of this research were: (i) to characterize growth of Acinetobacter sp. and Cupriavidus sp. consortia in sewage medium, enrichment medium, and medium supplemented with copper, (ii) to establish the potency of bacterial consortia to accumulate copper. The growth of bacteria was observed based on cell turbidity using spectrophotometer at wavelength of 600 nm. Cells pellet was destructed by nitric acid at 100oC and copper concentration was analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometer as copper accumulation value. The results showed that the growth of bacterial consortia in medium containing copper was better than that of single bacterium. The best bacterial consortium was the mixture of Acinetobacter sp. IrC1 and Acinetobacter sp. IrC2. The use of sewage as cultivation medium decreased bacterial growth by up to 25% but still resulted in the same level of logarithmic phase in enrichment medium. The highest accumulation capability was of a consortium of Acinetobacter sp. IrC1 and Acinetobacter sp. IrC2 at a level of 6.45 g/mg copper/g cells dry weight, suggesting that 5.09% of copper were accumulated by cells. It was concluded that the best composition of consortia in growth and copper accumulation capability was the mixture of Acinetobacter sp. IrC1 and Acinetobacter sp. IrC2. These results may be due to the fact that both bacteria belong to the same genus that allowed them for synergistic interactions.

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In Vitro Study of Butyric Acid Deodorization Potential by Indigenously Constructed Bacterial Consortia and Pure Cultures from Pit Latrine Fecal Sludge

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12125156 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (12) ◽

pp. 5156

Author(s):

John Bright Joseph Njalam’mano ◽

Evans Martin Nkhalambayausi Chirwa ◽

Refilwe Lesego Seabi

Keyword(s):

Butyric Acid ◽

In Vitro Study ◽

Bacterial Consortium ◽

Growth Conditions ◽

Bacterial Strains ◽

Bacterial Consortia ◽

Fecal Sludge ◽

Pure Cultures ◽

Pit Latrine

The present study aims at developing an efficient bacterial consortium to biodegrade butyric acid, one of the odor-causing compounds that contribute significantly to pit latrine malodors. Six bacterial strains isolated from pit latrine fecal sludge were selected for the study. Nineteen bacterial consortia of different combinations were artificially constructed. The individual bacterial strains and bacterial consortia were compared by culturing in mineral salt medium supplemented with 1000 mg/L butyric acid as a sole carbon and energy source at pH 7, 30 °C, and 110 rpm under aerobic growth conditions. A co-culture of Serratia marcescens and Bacillus cereus was an effective bacterial consortium compared to individual component bacterial strains and other bacterial consortia, in which 1000 mg/L butyric acid was completely degraded within 16 h of incubation. A temperature of 30 °C and pH 7 were found to be optimum for the maximum degradation for both S. marcescens and B. cereus. The inoculation sizes of 2.0 and 2.5 were optimal for the maximum degradation for B. cereus and S. marcescens, respectively. The study provides insights that will be of substantial help in the development of effective biological treatment technologies for pit latrine odor to change the pit latrine user community’s and would be users’ perception of pit latrines.

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The Conservation of Low Complexity Regions in Bacterial Proteins Depends on the Pathogenicity of the Strain and Subcellular Location of the Protein

Genes ◽

10.3390/genes12030451 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (3) ◽

pp. 451

Author(s):

Pablo Mier ◽

Miguel A. Andrade-Navarro

Keyword(s):

Membrane Proteins ◽

Outer Membrane ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

Outer Membrane Proteins ◽

Subcellular Location ◽

Low Complexity ◽

Extracellular Proteins ◽

Bacterial Strains ◽

Bacterial Proteins ◽

Protein Subcellular Location

Low complexity regions (LCRs) in proteins are characterized by amino acid frequencies that differ from the average. These regions evolve faster and tend to be less conserved between homologs than globular domains. They are not common in bacteria, as compared to their prevalence in eukaryotes. Studying their conservation could help provide hypotheses about their function. To obtain the appropriate evolutionary focus for this rapidly evolving feature, here we study the conservation of LCRs in bacterial strains and compare their high variability to the closeness of the strains. For this, we selected 20 taxonomically diverse bacterial species and obtained the completely sequenced proteomes of two strains per species. We calculated all orthologous pairs for each of the 20 strain pairs. Per orthologous pair, we computed the conservation of two types of LCRs: compositionally biased regions (CBRs) and homorepeats (polyX). Our results show that, in bacteria, Q-rich CBRs are the most conserved, while A-rich CBRs and polyA are the most variable. LCRs have generally higher conservation when comparing pathogenic strains. However, this result depends on protein subcellular location: LCRs accumulate in extracellular and outer membrane proteins, with conservation increased in the extracellular proteins of pathogens, and decreased for polyX in the outer membrane proteins of pathogens. We conclude that these dependencies support the functional importance of LCRs in host–pathogen interactions.

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Isolation and efficacy of two bacterial strains antagonists of Erwinia amylovora and Pectobacterium carotovorum

Egyptian Journal of Biological Pest Control ◽

10.1186/s41938-021-00443-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 31 (1) ◽

Author(s):

M’hamed BENADA ◽

Boualem BOUMAAZA ◽

Sofiane BOUDALIA ◽

Omar KHALADI

Keyword(s):

Fire Blight ◽

Erwinia Amylovora ◽

Bacterial Species ◽

Crop Protection ◽

Soft Rot ◽

Causal Agent ◽

Plant Diseases ◽

Ecological Niches ◽

Pectobacterium Carotovorum ◽

Bacterial Strains

Abstract Background The development of ecofriendly tools against plant diseases is an important issue in crop protection. Screening and selection process of bacterial strains antagonists of 2 pathogenic bacterial species that limit very important crops, Erwinia amylovora, the causal agent of the fire blight disease, and Pectobacterium carotovorum, the causal agent of bacterial potato soft rot, were reported. Bacterial colonies were isolated from different ecological niches, where both pathogens were found: rhizosphere of potato tubers and fruits and leaves of pear trees from the northwest region of Algeria. Direct and indirect confrontation tests against strains of E. amylovora and P. carotovorum were performed. Results Results showed a significant antagonistic activity against both phytopathogenic species, using direct confrontation method and supernatants of cultures (p<0.005). In vitro assays showed growth inhibitions of both phytopathogenic species. Furthermore, results revealed that the strains of S. plymuthica had a better inhibitory effect than the strains of P. fluorescens against both pathogens. In vivo results on immature pear fruits showed a significant decrease in the progression of the fire blight symptoms, with a variation in the infection index from one antagonistic strain to another between 31.3 and 50%, and slice of potato showed total inhibition of the pathogen (P. carotovorum) by the antagonistic strains of Serratia plymuthica (p<0.005). Conclusion This study highlighted that the effective bacteria did not show any infection signs towards plant tissue, and considered as a potential strategy to limit the fire blight and soft rot diseases.

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