Culture-dependent and independent approaches for identifying novel halogenases encoded by Crambe crambe (marine sponge) microbiota

Abstract

Sponges harbour microbial communities that contribute to the genetic and metabolic potential of their host. Among metabolites produced by sponge-associated microbial communities, halogenated compounds are of special interest because of their biotechnological potential. In this study, we have examined the diversity of the cultivable fraction of the marine demosponge Crambe crambe microbiota. Application of complementary cultivation methods yielded 107 bacterial isolates, some of which may be sponge-specific based on their phylogenetic analysis. Among these, Psychrobacter sp. was found to contain a putative halogenase gene. In addition to the culture-dependent approach for discovering halogenase genes, a cDNA library was constructed to determine the diversity of halogenase genes expressed in situ by the C. crambe microbiota. To this end, seventeen putative tryptophan halogenase cDNA sequences were identified, most of which were only remotely related to known halogenase genes, indicating the potential for novel bioactive compounds being produced by the C. crambe microbiota.

Enzymatic Halogenation and Dehalogenation Reactions: Pervasive and Mechanistically Diverse

“…34,347,446,447 Marine sponges are the ‘petri-dishes of the oceans’ harboring an extraordinary diversity of endosymbiotic microbiome that has been postulated, and in many cases experimentally verified, to be the source of the natural product diversity. 448–451 It is thus noteworthy that while the inventory of FDHs from sponge-microbiome consortia has attracted recent interest, 452,453 to the best of our knowledge, no sponge-derived FDH, V-CPO, V-BPO, or SAM-dependent halogenase has been confirmed within genomic or biochemical context for the production of a halogenated natural product. A singular instance of homologs of NHFe halogenases detected in sponge microbiomes have been paired with natural product biosynthetic chemistry.…”

Environmental switching during biofilm development in a cold seep system and functional determinants of species sorting

“…Because the microbiomes of an increasing number of environments have undergone deep sequencing, the diversity of microbial activities continues to rise (Öztürk et al . ; Li et al . ).…”

Diversity and antimicrobial potential of culturable heterotrophic bacteria associated with the endemic marine spongeArenosclera brasiliensis

“…The direct assignment of a specific sponge-associated isolate of biotechnological relevance is however a rare occurrence, even considering the increasing efforts towards the discovery of sponge associated bacteria, cyanobacteria and fungi capable of producing biologically active secondary metabolites (Wang, 2006; Öztürk et al, 2013). …”