Change in food ingestion induces rapid shifts in the diversity of microbiota associated with cutaneous mucus of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar

To test the hypothesis that a switch in diet might cause changes in the abundance and composition of mucous‐dwelling microorganisms, a short‐term experiment was conducted with Atlantic salmon Salmo salar. Fish were fed on three different diets: pelleted S. salar feed, macroinvertebrates or pellets supplemented with an antibiotic. A fourth group of fish was deprived of food throughout the trial. Seven days after manipulating diets, significant differences were found in microbial density and community composition (quantified by different morphologically distinct colonies), particularly between fed and unfed animals. Moreover, food deprivation caused a rapid decrease in the number of epidermal mucous cells of the lateral skin, which may indicate a decrease in mucous secretion and explain differences in the diversity of mucous‐dwelling microbiota observed in the fish. This is the first report of an effect of feeding regime on the abundance of microbial communities associated with cutaneous mucus of fishes.     

环境微生物培养新技术的研究进展

遍布于地球上各种生境中的微生物具有丰富的物种多样性.迄今为止,能够在实验室条件下培养的微生物仅仅是其中的一小部分,微生物物种的绝大多数还都难以在现有培养技术和条件下进行繁殖和生长.人们把那些尚未在实验室获得培养生长的微生物称之为未培养微生物(Uncultured microorganisms).本文概述了一些制约微生物培养生长的影响因素,重点介绍了近年来出现的一些新颖独特的环境微生物培养技术和方法,包括稀释培养法、高通量培养技术、模拟自然环境的扩散盒技术、土壤基质膜装置、细胞微囊包埋技术等.此外,本文还总结了通过改善微生物培养条件、设计开发新型的微生物培养基等方面取得的令人瞩目的进展.这些新颖培养技术和培养方法的出现,显著提高了微生物的可培养性,发现和鉴定了许多新的微生物物种,极大地丰富了可培养微生物的多样性和微生物资源,并为深入研究和开发微生物奠定了良好的资源研究基础.     

半导体矿物介导非光合微生物利用光电子新途径

自然界中微生物按其能量代谢途径主要分为两种:光能营养微生物和化能营养微生物.化能营养微生物作为非光能营养微生物长期被排除在以日光为能量来源的能量利用途径之外.本文介绍了一种新的微生物能量利用途径,即非光能营养微生物通过半导体矿物光催化作用来利用太阳能进行生长.实验室模拟体系中,金属氧化物、金属硫化物等天然半导体矿物在模拟日光激发下产生的光电子促进了化能自养与异养微生物的生长.研究结果表明微生物的生长与光子能量和光子数量密切相关,同时不同波长光辐照下的微生物生长情况与矿物的光吸收谱相吻合.这一能量利用途径的光能-生物能转化效率为0.13‰-1.90‰.在含有天然半导体矿物与天然微生物的红壤体系中,进一步发现半导体矿物光催化能够明显改变环境微生物的种群结构.已有的研究揭示了一种新发现并极有可能长期在地球上存在的微生物能量利用途径,即通过自然界中半导体矿物日光催化作用产生的光电子能够促进非光能营养微生物的生长代谢活动.     

海洋微生物抗菌脂肽及新生物农药研发

近年来,微生物脂肽作为生物农药的研究与应用,在国内外得到了广泛重视,成为今后生物农药发展的一个重要方向。从不同生境分离获得多批海洋微生物,通过筛选抗植物病原真菌活性强的菌株,发酵、分离、纯化及鉴定其代谢产物,从3种芽胞杆菌中发现了6个新的抗菌脂肽,属于iturins和fengycin类化合物。芽胞杆菌的芽胞及脂肽可研发防治植物真菌病害新生物农药。     

Challenges,achievements and opportunities in allelopathy research

Abstract

Allelopathy is defined as the suppression of any aspect of growth and/or development of one plant by another through the release of chemical compounds. Although allelopathic interference has been demonstrated many times using in vitro experiments, few studies have clearly demonstrated allelopathy in natural settings. This difficulty reflects the complexity in examining and demonstrating allelopathic interactions under field conditions. In this paper we address a number of issues related to the complexity of allelopathic interference in higher plants: These are: (i) is a demonstrated pattern or zone of inhibition important in documenting allelopathy? (ii) is it ecologically relevant to explain the allelopathic potential of a species based on a single bioactive chemical? (iii) what is the significance of the various modes of allelochemical release from the plant into the environment? (iv) do soil characteristics clearly influence allelopathic activity? (v) is it necessary to exclude other plant interference mechanisms?, and (vi) how can new achievements in allelopathy research aid in solving problems related to relevant ecological issues encountered in research conducted upon natural systems and agroecosystems? A greater knowledge of plant interactions in ecologically relevant environments, as well as the study of biochemical pathways, will enhance our understanding of the role of allelopathy in agricultural and natural settings. In addition, novel findings related to the relevant enzymes and genes involved in production of putative allelochemicals, allelochemical persistence in the rhizosphere, the molecular target sites of allelochemicals in sensitive plant species and the influence of allelochemicals upon other organisms will likely lead to enhanced utilization of natural products for pest management or as pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals. This review will address these recent findings, as well as the major challenges which continue to influence the outcomes of allelopathy research.     

Emerging role of roots in plant responses to aboveground insect herbivory

Plants have evolved complex biochemical mechanisms to counter threats from insect herbivory. Recent research has revealed an important role of roots in plant responses to above ground herbivory (AGH). The involvement of roots is integral to plant resistance and tolerance mechanisms. Roots not only play an active role in plant defenses by acting as sites for biosynthesis of various toxins and but also contribute to tolerance by storing photoassimilates to enable future regrowth. The interaction of roots with beneficial soil‐borne microorganisms also influences the outcome of the interaction between plant and insect herbivores. Shoot‐to‐root communication signals are critical for plant response to AGH. A better understanding of the role of roots in plant response to AGH is essential in order to develop a comprehensive picture of plant‐insect interactions. Here, we summarize the current status of research on the role of roots in plant response to AGH and also discuss possible signals involved in shoot‐to‐root communication.     

Influence of Celery on the Remediation of PAHs-contaminated Farm Soil

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contamination has been considered as one of the major environmental concerns for farmland soil all over the world including China. Due to small per capita land area, to find crops or vegetable, which could not only degrade the PAHs contaminants but also would not concentrate PAHs, was particularly important. Celery was selected as the phytoremediator in this experiment, and the soil enzyme activity, PAHs-degrading microorganisms, and the speciation of PAHs in soil were studied. The results showed that celery could significantly enhance the remediation of PAHs compared with the controlled experiment after 90 days (p< 0.01), and the removal efficiency were 31.29%, 30.79%, and 50.21% in the soil, non-rhizosphere soil, and rhizosphere soil, respectively. The soil enzyme activity and PAHs-degrading microorganisms significantly increased in rhizosphere soil compared with non-rhizosphere soil (p< 0.05), and the bioaccessibility of PAHs in soil could have been enhanced in the presence of celery root exudates. Those would help the bioremediation of PAHs by soil microorganisms. Meanwhile, the concentration of PAHs in the edible portion of celery was only 17.13 ± 1.24 μg/kg, and the bioconcentration factors in the aboveground part of celery were only 0.025. This study provides a potential in-site farmland soil phytoremediation technology that could have practical utility.     

Bioaerosol biomonitoring: Sampling optimization for molecular microbial ecology

Bioaerosols (or biogenic aerosols) have largely been overlooked by molecular ecologists. However, this is rapidly changing as bioaerosols play key roles in public health, environmental chemistry and the dispersal ecology of microbes. Due to the low environmental concentrations of bioaerosols, collecting sufficient biomass for molecular methods is challenging. Currently, no standardized methods for bioaerosol collection for molecular ecology research exist. Each study requires a process of optimization, which greatly slows the advance of bioaerosol science. Here, we evaluated air filtration and liquid impingement for bioaerosol sampling across a range of environmental conditions. We also investigated the effect of sampling matrices, sample concentration strategies and sampling duration on DNA yield. Air filtration using polycarbonate filters gave the highest recovery, but due to the faster sampling rates possible with impingement, we recommend this method for fine ‐scale temporal/spatial ecological studies. To prevent bias for the recovery of Gram‐positive bacteria, we found that the matrix for impingement should be phosphate‐buffered saline. The optimal method for bioaerosol concentration from the liquid matrix was centrifugation. However, we also present a method using syringe filters for rapid in‐field recovery of bioaerosols from impingement samples, without compromising microbial diversity for high ‐throughput sequencing approaches. Finally, we provide a resource that enables molecular ecologists to select the most appropriate sampling strategy for their specific research question.     

不同种植年限猕猴桃园土壤微生物功能多样性研究

陕西秦岭北麓是世界上最大的猕猴桃生产基地,长期相对单一的果树种植方式导致不同种植年限果园土壤微生态环境差异。研究猕猴桃园土壤微生物功能多样性随种植年限的变化特征,为果园土壤科学管理提供参考。采集不同种植年限猕猴桃根际土壤,应用平板菌落计数法和Biolog-Eco法研究土壤微生物的数量、种群以及功能多样性,并对土壤微生物功能多样性与土壤养分的相关性进行分析。结果显示,猕猴桃园土壤可培养微生物以细菌为主,其次是放线菌,真菌数量最少。随着种植年限的增加,细菌和放线菌数量显著降低,而真菌数量显著升高。微生物平均颜色变化率(average well-color development,AWCD)、微生物群落Shannon-Wiener指数(H′)、Simpson指数(D)及McIntosh指数(U)均随种植年限的增加而显著降低。主成分分析显示,不同种植年限猕猴桃园土壤微生物碳源利用特征明显不同,0～5 a、5～10 a和10～20 a的猕猴桃园土壤微生物群落分别被划分在载荷图的第一、第四和第三象限。猕猴桃园土壤微生物对糖类、氨基酸类和酯类的利用率相对较高,而对醇类、胺类和酸类的利用率相对较低。对第1主成分贡献大的碳源(|r|≥0.5)有11种,其中糖类占36%,氨基酸类和酯类均占18%。土壤微生物功能多样性与土壤养分相关性分析表明,土壤微生物功能多样性与土壤有机质正相关,与有效磷和速效钾负相关。结果表明,随种植年限的增加,猕猴桃园土壤微生物的数量和结构发生变化,微生物功能多样性降低,对碳源利用能力降低。鉴于土壤微生物功能多样性与土壤养分的相关性,应合理加大有机肥施用量,适量减少有效磷和速效钾的施用量。     

Allelopathic effects of volatile organic compounds released from Pinus halepensis needles and roots

The Mediterranean region is recognized as a global biodiversity hotspot. However, over the last decades, the cessation of traditional farming in the north part of the Mediterranean basin has given way to strong afforestation leading to occurrence of abandoned agricultural lands colonized by pioneer expansionist species like Pinus halepensis. This pine species is known to synthesize a wide range of secondary metabolites, and previous studies have demonstrated strong allelopathic potentialities of its needle and root leachates. Pinus halepensis is also recognized to release significant amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOC) with potential allelopathic effects that have never been investigated. In this context, the objectives of the present study were to improve our knowledge about the VOC released from P. halepensis needles and roots, determine if these VOC affect the seed germination and root growth of two herbaceous target species (Lactuca sativa and Linum strictum), and evaluate if soil microorganisms modulate the potential allelopathic effects of these VOC. Thirty terpenes were detected from both, needle and root emissions with β‐caryophyllene as the major volatile. Numerous terpenes, such as β‐caryophyllene, δ‐terpinene, or α‐pinene, showed higher headspace concentrations according to the gradient green needles < senescent needles < needle litter. Seed germination and root growth of the two target species were mainly reduced in presence of P. halepensis VOC. In strong contrast with the trend reported with needle leachates in literature, we observed an increasing inhibitory effect of P. halepensis VOC with the progress of needle physiological stages (i.e., green needle < senescent needle < needle litter). Surprisingly, several inhibitory effects observed on filter paper were also found or even amplified when natural soil was used as a substrate, highlighting that soil microorganisms do not necessarily limit the negative effects of VOC released by P. halepensis on herbaceous target species.