Applications for Biotechnology: Present and Future Improvements in Bacteria

A special issue of BioTech (ISSN 2673-6284).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2022) | Viewed by 15569

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Centre for Modern Interdisciplinary Technologies, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Torun, Poland
Interests: MALDI TOF MS; molecular biology; fast microbial identification techniques; biomarkers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The application of biotechnology in industry and medicine is rapidly expanding around the globe. This is especially true of bacteria due to their various advantages, including large-scale production, short time of cultivation, and ease of handling. Therefore, bacteria are seen as cost-effective and environmentally friendly solutions for the sustainable development of such branches as the food production chain, agriculture, pharmaceuticals or bulk chemicals, and biofuel production. Within these areas, tremendous progress was made over the last decades in providing novel solutions in, among others, the generation of new enzyme-based products; enhancement of crop productivity; the food processing sector, especially in the areas of food fermentation, enzymes, food ingredients, food testing, and postharvest management of horticultural crops; and in biofuel production through so-called next-generation industrial biotechnology (NGIB). Such advancements arise from both the recent discoveries in genetic mobilization methodologies for the improvement industrial strains properties (e.g., CRISPR-Cas technology) as well as from achievements in the field related to rapid and reliable microorganism identification – spectroscopic techniques such as MALDI-TOF MS, Raman, infrared, and intrinsic fluorescence – or for molecular analyses – next-generation sequencing (NGS).

This Special Issue will highlight and discuss modern trends regarding the application of bacteria in biotechnology, including recent advancements in strain identification and selection as well as novel solutions for the utilization of bacteria in agriculture, food processing, and industries related to bulk chemicals and medicine.

It is my pleasure to invite you to submit a manuscript for this Special Issue. Research articles, reviews, communications, and concept papers are all welcome.

Dr. Michał Złoch
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • MALDI-TOF MS
  • next-generation sequencing
  • infrared spectroscopy
  • genetic engineering
  • next-generation industrial biotechnology
  • biofertilizers
  • biofuel
  • food processing
  • enzyme production

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 1102 KiB  
Article
Horizontal Transfer of Virulence Factors by Pathogenic Enterobacteria to Marine Saprotrophic Bacteria during Co-Cultivation in Biofilm
by Alena I. Eskova, Boris G. Andryukov, Anatoli A. Yakovlev, Alexandra V. Kim, Anna L. Ponomareva and Vera S. Obuhova
BioTech 2022, 11(2), 17; https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech11020017 - 24 May 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2853
Abstract
Environmental problems associated with marine pollution and climate warming create favorable conditions for the penetration and survival of pathogenic bacteria in marine ecosystems. These microorganisms have interspecific competitive interactions with marine bacteria. Co-culture, as an important research strategy that mimics the natural environment [...] Read more.
Environmental problems associated with marine pollution and climate warming create favorable conditions for the penetration and survival of pathogenic bacteria in marine ecosystems. These microorganisms have interspecific competitive interactions with marine bacteria. Co-culture, as an important research strategy that mimics the natural environment of bacteria, can activate silent genes or clusters through interspecies interactions. The authors used modern biotechnology of co-cultivation to dynamically study intercellular interactions between different taxa of bacteria—pathogenic enterobacteria Yersinia pseudotuberculosis and Listeria monocytogenes and saprotrophic marine bacteria Bacillus sp. and Pseudomonas japonica isolated in summer from the coastal waters of the recreational areas of the Sea of Japan. The results of the experiments showed that during the formation of polycultural biofilms, horizontal transfer of genes encoding some pathogenicity factors from Y. pseudotuberculosis and L. monocytogenes to marine saprotrophic bacteria with different secretion systems is possible. It was previously thought that this was largely prevented by the type VI secretion system (T6SS) found in marine saprotrophic bacteria. The authors showed for the first time the ability of marine bacteria Bacillus sp. and P. japonica to biofilm formation with pathogenic enterobacteria Y. pseudotuberculosis and L. monocytogenes, saprophytic bacteria with type III secretion system (T3SS). For the first time, a marine saprotrophic strain of Bacillus sp. Revealed manifestations of hyaluronidase, proteolytic and hemolytic activity after cultivation in a polycultural biofilm with listeria. Saprotrophic marine bacteria that have acquired virulence factors from pathogenic enterobacteria, including antibiotic resistance genes, could potentially play a role in altering the biological properties of other members of the marine microbial community. In addition, given the possible interdomain nature of intercellular gene translocation, acquired virulence factors can be transferred to marine unicellular and multicellular eukaryotes. The results obtained contribute to the paradigm of the epidemiological significance and potential danger of anthropogenic pollution of marine ecosystems, which creates serious problems for public health and the development of marine culture as an important area of economic activity in coastal regions. Full article
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15 pages, 2201 KiB  
Article
Prebiotic Potential and Value-Added Products Derived from Spirulina laxissima SV001—A Step towards Healthy Living
by Vidya Sankarapandian, Kirubakaran Nitharsan, Kavitha Parangusadoss, Prakash Gangadaran, Prasanna Ramani, Balu Alagar Venmathi Maran and Manasi P. Jogalekar
BioTech 2022, 11(2), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech11020013 - 26 Apr 2022
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3983
Abstract
Lately, microalgae-based value-added products have been gaining market value because they moderate the dependency on fossil fuel and high-value chemical products. To this end, the purpose of this study was to develop prebiotic products from the microalgae Spirulina sp. The microalgae were isolated [...] Read more.
Lately, microalgae-based value-added products have been gaining market value because they moderate the dependency on fossil fuel and high-value chemical products. To this end, the purpose of this study was to develop prebiotic products from the microalgae Spirulina sp. The microalgae were isolated from the fresh water and characterized at the molecular level. The dry biomass, chlorophyll content, phycocyanin, cytotoxicity and antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of the isolated strains were analyzed. Moreover, value-added products like Spirulina cake, chocolate, tea, vermicelli and Spirulina juice were made for a vulnerable population due to high nutritive value. Full article
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16 pages, 2059 KiB  
Article
Metagenomic Insights into the Composition and Function of Microbes Associated with the Rootzone of Datura inoxia
by Savanah Senn, Kelly Pangell and Adrianna L. Bowerman
BioTech 2022, 11(1), 1; https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech11010001 - 14 Jan 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4589
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to elucidate the roles that microbes may be playing in the rootzone of the medicinal plant Daturainoxia. We hypothesized that the microbes associated with the Datura rootzone would be significantly different than the similar surrounding [...] Read more.
The purpose of this paper is to elucidate the roles that microbes may be playing in the rootzone of the medicinal plant Daturainoxia. We hypothesized that the microbes associated with the Datura rootzone would be significantly different than the similar surrounding fields in composition and function. We also hypothesized that rhizospheric and endophytic microbes would be associated with similar metabolic functions to the plant rootzone they inhabited. The methods employed were microbial barcoding, tests of essential oils against antibiotic resistant bacteria and other soil bacterial isolates, 16S Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) metabarcoding, and Whole Genome Shotgun (WGS) taxonomic and functional analyses. A few of the main bacterial genera of interest that were differentially abundant in the Datura root microbiome were Flavobacterium (p = 0.007), Chitinophaga (p = 0.0007), Pedobacter (p = 6 × 10−5), Bradyhizobium (p = 1 × 10−8), and Paenibacillus (p = 1.46 × 10−6). There was significant evidence that the microbes associated with the Datura rootzone had elevated function related to bacterial chalcone synthase (p = 1.49 × 10−3) and permease genes (p < 0.003). There was some evidence that microbial functions in the Datura rootzone provided precursors to important plant bioactive molecules or were beneficial to plant growth. This is important because these compounds are phyto-protective antioxidants and are precursors to many aromatic bioactive compounds that are relevant to human health. In the context of known interactions, and current results, plants and microbes influence the flavonoid biosynthetic pathways of one other, in terms of the regulation of the phenylpropanoid pathway. This is the first study to focus on the microbial ecology of the Datura rootzone. There are possible biopharmaceutical and agricultural applications of the natural interplay that was discovered during this study of the Datura inoxia rhizosphere. Full article
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Review

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18 pages, 4624 KiB  
Review
Specialized Metabolism of Gordonia Genus: An Integrated Survey on Chemodiversity Combined with a Comparative Genomics-Based Analysis
by Jeysson Sánchez-Suárez, Luis Díaz, Ericsson Coy-Barrera and Luisa Villamil
BioTech 2022, 11(4), 53; https://doi.org/10.3390/biotech11040053 - 21 Nov 2022
Viewed by 3018
Abstract
Members of the phylum Actinomycetota (formerly Actinobacteria) have historically been the most prolific providers of small bioactive molecules. Although the genus Streptomyces is the best-known member for this issue, other genera, such as Gordonia, have shown interesting potential in their specialized [...] Read more.
Members of the phylum Actinomycetota (formerly Actinobacteria) have historically been the most prolific providers of small bioactive molecules. Although the genus Streptomyces is the best-known member for this issue, other genera, such as Gordonia, have shown interesting potential in their specialized metabolism. Thus, we combined herein the result of a comprehensive literature survey on metabolites derived from Gordonia strains with a comparative genomic analysis to examine the potential of the specialized metabolism of the genus Gordonia. Thirty Gordonia-derived compounds of different classes were gathered (i.e., alkaloids, amides, phenylpropanoids, and terpenoids), exhibiting antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities, and several were also isolated from Streptomyces (e.g., actinomycin, nocardamin, diolmycin A1). With the genome data, we estimated an open pan-genome of 57,901 genes, most of them being part of the cloud genome. Regarding the BGCs content, 531 clusters were found, including Terpenes, RiPP-like, and NRPS clusters as the most frequent clusters. Our findings demonstrated that Gordonia is a poorly studied genus in terms of its specialized metabolism production and potential applications. Nevertheless, given their BGCs content, Gordonia spp. are a valuable biological resource that could expand the chemical spectrum of the phylum Actinomycetota, involving novel BGCs for inspiring innovative outlines for synthetic biology and further use in biotechnological initiatives. Therefore, further studies and more efforts should be made to explore different environments and evaluate other bioactivities. Full article
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