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Baldanta S, Arnal R, Blanco-Rivero A, Guevara G, Navarro Llorens JM. First characterization of cultivable extremophile Chroococcidiopsis isolates from a solar panel. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:982422. [PMID: 36876112 PMCID: PMC9982165 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.982422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Microorganisms colonize a wide range of natural and artificial environments. Even though most of them are unculturable in laboratory conditions, some ecosystems are ideal niches for bioprospecting extremophiles with unique properties. Up today, there are few reports concerning microbial communities found on solar panels, a widespread, artificial, extreme habitat. Microorganisms found in this habitat belong to drought-, heat- and radiation-adapted genera, including fungi, bacteria, and cyanobacteria. Methods Here we isolated and identified several cyanobacteria from a solar panel. Then, some strains isolated were characterizated for their resistance to desiccation, UV-C exposition, and their growth on a range of temperature, pH, NaCl concentration or diverse carbon and nitrogen sources. Finally, gene transfer to these isolates was evaluated using several SEVA plasmids with different replicons to assess their potential in biotechnological applications. Results and discussion This study presents the first identification and characterization of cultivable extremophile cyanobacteria from a solar panel in Valencia, Spain. The isolates are members of the genera Chroococcidiopsis, Leptolyngbya, Myxacorys, and Oculatella all genera with species commonly isolated from deserts and arid regions. Four of the isolates were selected, all of them Chroococcidiopsis, and characterized. Our results showed that all Chroococcidiopsis isolates chosen were resistant up to a year of desiccation, viable after exposition to high doses of UV-C, and capable of being transformed. Our findings revealed that a solar panel is a useful ecological niche in searching for extremophilic cyanobacteria to further study the desiccation and UV-tolerance mechanisms. We conclude that these cyanobacteria can be modified and exploited as candidates for biotechnological purposes, including astrobiology applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Baldanta
- Metabolic Engineering Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Raquel Arnal
- Metabolic Engineering Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Amaya Blanco-Rivero
- Metabolic Engineering Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Govinda Guevara
- Metabolic Engineering Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Juana María Navarro Llorens
- Metabolic Engineering Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
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Shen J, Wyness AJ, Claire MW, Zerkle AL. Spatial Variability of Microbial Communities and Salt Distributions Across a Latitudinal Aridity Gradient in the Atacama Desert. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2021; 82:442-458. [PMID: 33438074 PMCID: PMC8384830 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-020-01672-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Over the past 150 million years, the Chilean Atacama Desert has been transformed into one of the most inhospitable landscapes by geophysical changes, which makes it an ideal Mars analog that has been explored for decades. However, a heavy rainfall that occurred in the Atacama in 2017 provides a unique opportunity to study the response of resident extremophiles to rapid environmental change associated with excessive water and salt shock. Here we combine mineral/salt composition measurements, amendment cell culture experiments, and next-generation sequencing analyses to study the variations in salts and microbial communities along a latitudinal aridity gradient of the Atacama Desert. In addition, we examine the reshuffling of Atacama microbiomes after the rainfall event. Analysis of microbial community composition revealed that soils within the southern arid desert were consistently dominated by Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Gemmatimonadetes, Planctomycetes, and Acidobacteria, and Verrucomicrobia. Intriguingly, the hyperarid microbial consortia exhibited a similar pattern to the more southern desert. Salts at the shallow subsurface were dissolved and leached down to a deeper layer, challenging indigenous microorganisms with the increasing osmotic stress. Microbial viability was found to change with aridity and rainfall events. This study sheds light on the structure of xerotolerant, halotolerant, and radioresistant microbiomes from the hyperarid northern desert to the less arid southern transition region, as well as their response to changes in water availability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianxun Shen
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK.
| | - Adam J Wyness
- Sediment Ecology Research Group, Scottish Oceans Institute, School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 8LB, UK
- Coastal Research Group, Department of Zoology and Entomology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, 6139, South Africa
| | - Mark W Claire
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK
| | - Aubrey L Zerkle
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AL, UK
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Flores N, Hoyos S, Venegas M, Galetović A, Zúñiga LM, Fábrega F, Paredes B, Salazar-Ardiles C, Vilo C, Ascaso C, Wierzchos J, Souza-Egipsy V, Araya JE, Batista-García RA, Gómez-Silva B. Haloterrigena sp. Strain SGH1, a Bacterioruberin-Rich, Perchlorate-Tolerant Halophilic Archaeon Isolated From Halite Microbial Communities, Atacama Desert, Chile. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:324. [PMID: 32194531 PMCID: PMC7066086 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 02/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
An extreme halophilic archaeon, strain SGH1, is a novel microorganism isolated from endolithic microbial communities colonizing halites at Salar Grande, Atacama Desert, in northern Chile. Our study provides structural, biochemical, genomic, and physiological information on this new isolate living at the edge of the physical and chemical extremes at the Atacama Desert. SGH1 is a Gram-negative, red-pigmented, non-motile unicellular coccoid organism. Under the transmission electron microscope, strain SGH1 showed an abundant electro-dense material surrounding electron-lucent globular structures resembling gas vacuoles. Strain SGH1 showed a 16S rRNA gene sequence with a close phylogenetic relationship to the extreme halophilic archaea Haloterrigena turkmenica and Haloterrigena salina and has been denominated Haloterrigena sp. strain SGH1. Strain SGH1 grew at 20-40°C (optimum 37°C), at salinities between 15 and 30% (w/v) NaCl (optimum 25%) and growth was improved by addition of 50 mM KCl and 0.5% w/v casamino acids. Growth was severely restricted at salinities below 15% NaCl and cell lysis is avoided at a minimal 10% NaCl. Maximal concentrations of magnesium chloride and sodium or magnesium perchlorates that supported SGH1 growth were 0.5 and 0.15M, respectively. Haloterrigena sp. strain SGH1 accumulates bacterioruberin (BR), a C50 xanthophyll, as the major carotenoid. Total carotenoids in strain SGH1 amounted to nearly 400 μg BR per gram of dry biomass. Nearly 80% of total carotenoids accumulated as geometric isomers of BR: all-trans-BR (50%), 5-cis-BR (15%), 9-cis-BR (10%), 13-cis-BR (4%); other carotenoids were dehydrated derivatives of BR. Carotenogenesis in SGH1 was a reversible and salt-dependent process; transferring BR-rich cells grown in 25% (w/v) NaCl to 15% (w/v) NaCl medium resulted in depigmentation, and BR content was recovered after transference and growth of unpigmented cells to high salinity medium. Methanol extracts and purified BR isomers showed an 8-9-fold higher antioxidant activity than Trolox or β-carotene. Both, plasma membrane integrity and mitochondrial membrane potential measurements under acute 18-h assays showed that purified BR isomers were non-toxic to cultured human THP-1 cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nataly Flores
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Sebastián Hoyos
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Mauricio Venegas
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Alexandra Galetović
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Lidia M. Zúñiga
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Francisca Fábrega
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Bernardo Paredes
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Camila Salazar-Ardiles
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Claudia Vilo
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Carmen Ascaso
- Department Biogeochemistry and Microbial Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences – Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jacek Wierzchos
- Department Biogeochemistry and Microbial Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences – Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Virginia Souza-Egipsy
- Department of Macromolecular Physics, Institute of Material Structure – Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jorge E. Araya
- Laboratory of Molecular Parasitology, Department of Medical Technology and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
| | - Ramón Alberto Batista-García
- Centro de Investigación en Dinámica Celular, Instituto de Investigación en Ciencias Básicas y Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca, Mexico
| | - Benito Gómez-Silva
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Biomedical Department and Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
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Mosca C, Rothschild LJ, Napoli A, Ferré F, Pietrosanto M, Fagliarone C, Baqué M, Rabbow E, Rettberg P, Billi D. Over-Expression of UV-Damage DNA Repair Genes and Ribonucleic Acid Persistence Contribute to the Resilience of Dried Biofilms of the Desert Cyanobacetrium Chroococcidiopsis Exposed to Mars-Like UV Flux and Long-Term Desiccation. Front Microbiol 2019; 10:2312. [PMID: 31681194 PMCID: PMC6798154 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.02312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2019] [Accepted: 09/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The survival limits of the desert cyanobacterium Chroococcidiopsis were challenged by rewetting dried biofilms and dried biofilms exposed to 1.5 × 103 kJ/m2 of a Mars-like UV, after 7 years of air-dried storage. PCR-stop assays revealed the presence of DNA lesions in dried biofilms and an increased accumulation in dried-UV-irradiated biofilms. Different types and/or amounts of DNA lesions were highlighted by a different expression of uvrA, uvrB, uvrC, phrA, and uvsE genes in dried-rewetted biofilms and dried-UV-irradiated-rewetted biofilms, after rehydration for 30 and 60 min. The up-regulation in dried-rewetted biofilms of uvsE gene encoding an UV damage endonuclease, suggested that UV-damage DNA repair contributed to the repair of desiccation-induced damage. While the phrA gene encoding a photolyase was up-regulated only in dried-UV-irradiated-rewetted biofilms. Nucleotide excision repair genes were over-expressed in dried-rewetted biofilms and dried-UV-irradiated-rewetted biofilms, with uvrC gene showing the highest increase in dried-UV-irradiated-rewetted biofilms. Dried biofilms preserved intact mRNAs (at least of the investigated genes) and 16S ribosomal RNA that the persistence of the ribosome machinery and mRNAs might have played a key role in the early phase recovery. Results have implications for the search of extra-terrestrial life by contributing to the definition of habitability of astrobiologically relevant targets such as Mars or planets orbiting around other stars.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Mosca
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Lynn J Rothschild
- Earth Sciences Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Mountain View, CA, United States
| | | | - Fabrizio Ferré
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna Alma Mater, Bologna, Italy
| | | | | | - Mickael Baqué
- Astrobiological Laboratories Research Group, German Aerospace Center, Institute of Planetary Research, Management and Infrastructure, Berlin, Germany
| | - Elke Rabbow
- German Aerospace Center, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Cologne, Germany
| | - Petra Rettberg
- German Aerospace Center, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Cologne, Germany
| | - Daniela Billi
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
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