Potential biotechnological capabilities of cultivable mycobiota from carwash effluents

Abstract

Urban life has created man‐made extreme environments like carwashes. These environments have, however, not been sufficiently explored for mycobiota that can be sources of biotechnologically useful products, as has been the case with natural extreme environments. Using a combination of culture and molecular techniques, fungi from carwash effluents was characterized for production of lipase and cellulase enzymes, nonpolar and polar biotechnologically relevant secondary metabolites and hydrocarbon utilization. The isolated fungal strains belonged to the genera Alternaria, Cladosporium, Penicillium, Peyronellaea, Rhizopus, Spegazzinia, Trichoderma, Ulocladium and Yarrowia. Sixty‐six percent (66%) of the fungal isolates were found to be able to metabolize naphthalene and benzanthracene, showing potential for application in bioremediation of hydrocarbon polluted sites. Lipase production by the isolates Penicillium sp. BPS3 (2.61 U/ml), Trichoderma sp. BPS9 (2.01 U/ml), Rhizopus sp. CAL1 (2.05 U/ml), Penicillium sp. PCW1 (2.99 U/ml) and Penicillium sp. SAS1 (2.16 U/ml) compared well with previously recorded lipase production levels by other fungi. The highest producers of cellulase were Penicillium sp. SAS1 (12.10 U/ml), Peyronella sp. CAW5 (4.49 U/ml) and Cladosporium sp. SAS3 (4.07 U/ml), although these activities were lower than previously reported levels. GC‐MS analysis of the fungal secondary metabolites resulted in identification of 572 compounds, including azulene, methanamine, N‐pentylidene, metoclopramide, and mepivacaine while compounds determined by UHPLC‐MS included 10‐undecen‐1‐ol, piquerol A, 10‐undecyn‐1‐ol, cyclo(leucylprolyl) and rac‐etomidate. These compounds were previously determined to have various activities including anticancer, antibacterial, antifungal, antihypertensive, antidiabetic and anti‐inflammatory properties. The study demonstrated that fungi from carwash effluents are natural sources of some biotechnologically important products.

All‐around management of a fungal isolate obtained from cheese spoilage as an environmental source: Direct approach from an undergrad student to a biotechnological characterization

“…There are scarce reports of screening for lipolytic activity for specific isolates of Penicillium crustosum using rhodamine B agar , however this technique has been widely used for a variety of microorganisms showing its effectiveness reaffirming its use by the results obtained in our research.…”

Yarrowia lipolytica Strains and Their Biotechnological Applications: How Natural Biodiversity and Metabolic Engineering Could Contribute to Cell Factories Improvement

“…In accordance to these high levels of secreted enzymatic activities, wild-type isolates of this yeast generally originate from lipid-rich and/or protein-rich environments, notably from meat and dairy products (especially fermented ones, such as dry sausages and cheeses) and from sewage or oil-polluted waters [ 1 , 2 ]. In the last decades, the range of ecosystems from which Y. lipolytica strains has been isolated has broadened to encompass very diverse habitats, from marine waters, salt marshes and soils (especially oil-polluted ones) to a variety of consumable products (including fruits, vegetables or seafood) and even the excreta of insects or vertebrates that consume them [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. This species thus appears to exhibit a rather ubiquitous distribution, in the natural world as well as in man-made extreme environments.…”

Yarrowia lipolytica strains and their biotechnological applications: how natural biodiversity and metabolic engineering could contribute to cell factories improvement

“…In accordance to these high levels of secreted enzymatic activities, wildtype isolates of this yeast generally originate from lipid-rich and/or protein-rich environments, notably from meat and dairy products (especially fermented ones, such as dry sausages and cheeses) and from sewage or oil-polluted waters [1,2]. In the last decades, the range of ecosystems from which Y. lipolytica strains has been isolated has broadened to encompass very diverse habitats, from marine waters, salt marshes and soils (especially oil-polluted ones) to a variety of consumable products (including fruits, vegetables or seafood) and even the excreta of insects or vertebrates that consume them [1,[3][4][5][6]. This species thus appears to exhibit a rather ubiquitous distribution, in the natural world as well as in man-made extreme environments.…”