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Life
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Extremophiles Breakthrough: Hot Topics and Current Issues in Their Isolation,...
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Extremophiles Breakthrough: Hot Topics and Current Issues in Their Isolation, Identification and Biotechnological Applications

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2024 | Viewed by 3911

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Giovanni Gallo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Division of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
Interests: extremophiles; Thermus thermophilus; arsenic resistance systems; genome-editing tools; synthetic biology; β-aminoacidos
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Martina Aulitto

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Institute of Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials (IPCB), Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) of Italy, Pozzuoli, Napoli, Italy
2. Department of Biology, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Napoli, Italy
3. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Berkeley, CA, USA
Interests: extremophiles; Thermus thermophilus; arsenic resistance systems; genome editing tools; synthetic biology; β-amino acids
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last few decades, the study of extremophiles has led to many discoveries that are useful in understanding how life evolved in particular ecological niches, as many enzymes derived from extremophilic microorganisms have had significant impacts on our lifestyle. The search for new extremophiles is crucial not only from an ecological point of view, but also from a biotechnological point of view. Extremophiles are considered to be factories of high-value molecules that are able to retain their biological activities under harsh conditions, normally employed in industrial processes. Moreover, recent studies have focused on the exploitation of these microorganisms for the isolation of enzymes to be used for sustainable bio-energy and bio-fuel production. As the Guest Editors of this Special Issue, we are pleased to invite you to submit your cutting-edge research articles and reviews related to extremophiles.

Dr. Giovanni Gallo
Dr. Martina Aulitto
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • astrobiology
  • biochemistry and molecular biology
  • biodiversity and ecology
  • biotechnology
  • extraterrestrial analogs
  • extreme environments
  • extremophiles
  • genetics, genomics, and proteomics
  • origin of life
  • phylogeny and evolution
  • physiology and metabolism

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 3792 KiB  
Article
Study of the Bacterial, Fungal, and Archaeal Communities Structures near the Bulgarian Antarctic Research Base “St. Kliment Ohridski” on Livingston Island, Antarctica
by Vesselin V. Doytchinov, Slavil Peykov and Svetoslav G. Dimov
Life 2024, 14(2), 278; https://doi.org/10.3390/life14020278 - 19 Feb 2024
Viewed by 983
Abstract
As belonging to one of the most isolated continents on our planet, the microbial composition of different environments in Antarctica could hold a plethora of undiscovered species with the potential for biotechnological applications. This manuscript delineates our discoveries after an expedition to the [...] Read more.
As belonging to one of the most isolated continents on our planet, the microbial composition of different environments in Antarctica could hold a plethora of undiscovered species with the potential for biotechnological applications. This manuscript delineates our discoveries after an expedition to the Bulgarian Antarctic Base “St. Kliment Ohridski” situated on Livingston Island, Antarctica. Amplicon-based metagenomics targeting the 16S rRNA genes and ITS2 region were employed to assess the metagenomes of the bacterial, fungal, and archaeal communities across diverse sites within and proximal to the research station. The predominant bacterial assemblages identified included Oxyphotobacteria, Bacteroidia, Gammaprotobacteria, and Alphaprotobacteria. A substantial proportion of cyanobacteria reads were attributed to a singular uncultured taxon within the family Leptolyngbyaceae. The bacterial profile of a lagoon near the base exhibited indications of penguin activity, characterized by a higher abundance of Clostridia, similar to lithotelm samples from Hannah Pt. Although most fungal reads in the samples could not be identified at the species level, noteworthy genera, namely Betamyces and Tetracladium, were identified. Archaeal abundance was negligible, with prevalent groups including Woesearchaeales, Nitrosarchaeum, Candidatus Nitrosopumilus, and Marine Group II. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extremophiles Breakthrough: Hot Topics and Current Issues in Their Isolation, Identification and Biotechnological Applications)
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12 pages, 2312 KiB  
Article
Characterization of a Type II L-Asparaginase from the Halotolerant Bacillus subtilis CH11
by Annsy Arredondo-Nuñez, Gisele Monteiro, Carol N. Flores-Fernández, Lina Antenucci, Perttu Permi and Amparo Iris Zavaleta
Life 2023, 13(11), 2145; https://doi.org/10.3390/life13112145 - 31 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1266
Abstract
L-asparaginases from bacterial sources have been used in antineoplastic treatments and the food industry. A type II L-asparaginase encoded by the N-truncated gene ansZP21 of halotolerant Bacillus subtilis CH11 isolated from Chilca salterns in Peru was expressed using a heterologous system in Escherichia [...] Read more.
L-asparaginases from bacterial sources have been used in antineoplastic treatments and the food industry. A type II L-asparaginase encoded by the N-truncated gene ansZP21 of halotolerant Bacillus subtilis CH11 isolated from Chilca salterns in Peru was expressed using a heterologous system in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3)pLysS. The recombinant protein was purified using one-step nickel affinity chromatography and exhibited an activity of 234.38 U mg−1 and a maximum catalytic activity at pH 9.0 and 60 °C. The enzyme showed a homotetrameric form with an estimated molecular weight of 155 kDa through gel filtration chromatography. The enzyme half-life at 60 °C was 3 h 48 min, and L-asparaginase retained 50% of its initial activity for 24 h at 37 °C. The activity was considerably enhanced by KCl, CaCl2, MgCl2, mercaptoethanol, and DL-dithiothreitol (p-value < 0.01). Moreover, the Vmax and Km were 145.2 µmol mL−1 min−1 and 4.75 mM, respectively. These findings evidence a promising novel type II L-asparaginase for future industrial applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extremophiles Breakthrough: Hot Topics and Current Issues in Their Isolation, Identification and Biotechnological Applications)
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20 pages, 2495 KiB  
Article
Microbial Ecosystems in Movile Cave: An Environment of Extreme Life
by Joost W. Aerts, Serban M. Sarbu, Traian Brad, Pascale Ehrenfreund and Hans V. Westerhoff
Life 2023, 13(11), 2120; https://doi.org/10.3390/life13112120 - 26 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1079
Abstract
Movile Cave, situated in Romania close to the Black Sea, constitutes a distinct and challenging environment for life. Its partially submerged ecosystem depends on chemolithotrophic processes for its energetics, which are fed by a continuous hypogenic inflow of mesothermal waters rich in reduced [...] Read more.
Movile Cave, situated in Romania close to the Black Sea, constitutes a distinct and challenging environment for life. Its partially submerged ecosystem depends on chemolithotrophic processes for its energetics, which are fed by a continuous hypogenic inflow of mesothermal waters rich in reduced chemicals such as hydrogen sulfide and methane. We sampled a variety of cave sublocations over the course of three years. Furthermore, in a microcosm experiment, minerals were incubated in the cave waters for one year. Both endemic cave samples and extracts from the minerals were subjected to 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. The sequence data show specific community profiles in the different subenvironments, indicating that specialized prokaryotic communities inhabit the different zones in the cave. Already after one year, the different incubated minerals had been colonized by specific microbial communities, indicating that microbes in Movile Cave can adapt in a relatively short timescale to environmental opportunities in terms of energy and nutrients. Life can thrive, diversify and adapt in remote and isolated subterranean environments such as Movile Cave. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Extremophiles Breakthrough: Hot Topics and Current Issues in Their Isolation, Identification and Biotechnological Applications)
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