BeerDeCoded: the open beer metagenome project

Abstract

Next generation sequencing has radically changed research in the life sciences, in both academic and corporate laboratories. The potential impact is tremendous, yet a majority of citizens have little or no understanding of the technological and ethical aspects of this widespread adoption. We designed BeerDeCoded as a pretext to discuss the societal issues related to genomic and metagenomic data with fellow citizens, while advancing scientific knowledge of the most popular beverage of all. In the spirit of citizen science, sample collection and DNA extraction were carried out with the participation of non-scientists in the community laboratory of Hackuarium, a not-for-profit organisation that supports unconventional research and promotes the public understanding of science. The dataset presented herein contains the targeted metagenomic profile of 39 bottled beers from 5 countries, based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing of fungal species. A preliminary analysis reveals the presence of a large diversity of wild yeast species in commercial brews. With this project, we demonstrate that coupling simple laboratory procedures that can be carried out in a non-professional environment, with state-of-the-art sequencing technologies and targeted metagenomic analyses, can lead to the detection and identification of the microbial content in bottled beer. Competing interests: GR is the co-founder, CTO and a shareholder of SwissDeCode, a company selling point-of-need DNA tests to food manufacturers for food safety and compliance. JS, LH and NR declare no competing interests.

Citation needed? Wikipedia bibliometrics during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Viewed as such, Wikipedia's citizen encyclopedists can play the same role communicating science that citizen scientists play in creating science. However, as previous citizen science projects have taught us (41), for that to work, citizens need scientists to provide the framework for non-expert contributions (42,43). As this study shows, a similar infrastructure can be seen to exist on Wikipedia for encyclopedic as opposed to scientific work.…”

A Culture-Independent Comparison of Microbial Communities of Two Maturating Craft Beers Styles

“…Wallemia, although less reported in craft beer, was detected in survey of commercial beer in different European countries [35].…”

“…Molds are present in the cereal grains [34]. In industrial beer, they are associated with spoilage and development of off-flavours [35]. In the particular case of craft beer maturated in wood barrels, lignocellulose and hemicellulose degrading fungi [14] can actually contribute to the saccharification of wood compounds, increasing the alcoholic potential and clarity of beer and providing particular imprints to the final flavor [36].…”

Mixed-Culture Metagenomics of the Microbes Making Sour Beer

“…Here, B. bruxellensis was the species with highest proportions found in the ASVs of this genus, totaling to >90% of the fungal microbiome in some samples such as 12, 17, and 19. Sobel et al (2017) [38] also highlighted the large presence of B. bruxellensis in traditional beers from countries such as Belgium, Italy, and Switzerland, detecting it in the metagenomes of 36 samples (n = 39). Not only did we find B. bruxellensis in large proportions in our samples but also B. anomalus (15% of the ASVs in sample 1) and B. custersianus, which comprised >85% of the ASVs in sample 13.…”