BacterioFiles 385 - Prokaryotes Protect Paper

Lysobacter enzymogenes 

attacking a fungal hypha

GFDL

This episode: Bacteria produce antifungal compounds that can protect paper from fungal deterioration!

Download Episode (6.8 MB, 7.4 minutes)

Show notes:
Microbe of the episode: Acetobacter aceti

Takeaways
Paper is a very useful information storage medium, but it is also somewhat delicious for microbes that can break it down as food, degrade the quality, and cause indelible stains and discoloration under the right conditions. Preventing this usually requires careful control, such as keeping humidity low, for storing paper for long periods.

In this study, scientists tested the ability of the bacterium Lysobacter enzymogenes to protect paper via the antifungal compounds it produces. This first required filtering out the pigments that the bacteria produced, to prevent them from discoloring the paper. Once a method for this filtering was in place, they found the bacterial culture supernatant could significantly reduce fungal growth on various kinds of paper, and protect the paper from staining and degradation.

Journal Paper:
Chen Z, Zou J, Chen B, Du L, Wang M. 2019. Protecting books from mold damage by decreasing paper bioreceptivity to fungal attack using de-coloured cell-free supernatant of Lysobacter enzymogenes C3. J Appl Microbiol 126:1772–1784.

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

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BacterioFiles 384 - Moss Materials Modify Microbiota

Moss with fungi

This episode: Contact with soil materials and moss causes significant, though short-term, changes in the skin microbiota!

Thanks to Dr. Mira Grönroos for her contribution!

Download Episode (7.1 MB, 7.75 minutes)

Show notes:
Microbe of the episode: Leonurus mosaic virus

Takeaways
Exposure to microbes throughout life is thought to help calibrate the immune system to some extent, reducing the risk of allergies and asthma without losing defense against pathogens. In this study, rubbing soil or packets of moss on the skin changed the composition of the skin microbiota temporarily, so this may be a way to help with this important type of exposure, but it is not yet known how to achieve optimal long-term effects.

Journal Paper:
Grönroos M, Parajuli A, Laitinen OH, Roslund MI, Vari HK, Hyöty H, Puhakka R, Sinkkonen A. 2019. Short-term direct contact with soil and plant materials leads to an immediate increase in diversity of skin microbiota. MicrobiologyOpen 8:e00645.

Other interesting stories:

• Cadmium-resistant microbes can help plants take up more cadmium to clean up soil (paper)
• Plant symbionts acquired genes that turned them into insect pathogens (paper)

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, RSS, Google Play. Support the show at Patreon, or check out the show at Twitter or Facebook.

BacterioFiles 383 - Communities Carry Communicable Communities

Village in Fiji

By Merbabu~commonswiki

Own work, CC BY-SA3.0

I'm back! This episode: Looking at how people in different villages share microbes!

Download Episode (6.5 MB, 7.0 minutes)

Show notes:
Microbe of the episode: Cristispira pectinis

Takeaways
Our microbiota, the communities of microbes living in and on our bodies, are incredibly diverse and varied. Each person's is different, and they can change drastically over time with changes in location, diet, lifestyle, and other factors.

Learning how our microbiota forms and changes and functions is important, because it can affect many aspects of health. In this study, villagers in the islands of Fiji share microbes with others in the same and other villages, but not always in patterns that might be expected.

Journal Paper:
Brito IL, Gurry T, Zhao S, Huang K, Young SK, Shea TP, Naisilisili W, Jenkins AP, Jupiter SD, Gevers D, Alm EJ. Transmission of human-associated microbiota along family and social networks. Nat Microbiol.

Other interesting stories:

• Figuring out how probiotic microbe protects gut against pathogens (paper)
• Insect symbiont Wolbachia grown in sugar yeast cells (paper)

Post questions or comments here or email to bacteriofiles@gmail.com. Thanks for listening!

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts, RSS, Google Play. Support the show at Patreon, or check out the show at Twitter or Facebook.