Cellulolytic microbes in the Yanbaru, a subtropical rainforest with an endemic biota on Okinawa Island, Japan

Cellulolytic microbes in the soil of the Yanbaru, a subtropical forest with an endemic biota, on Okinawa Island, were isolated and characterized in a search for novel microbial strains with biotechnological potential. Soil samples of the Yanbaru were suspended in sterilized water, inoculated on mineral salt agar overlaid with a filter paper as carbon source, and cultivated aerobically at 30 °C. After 2 weeks of cultivation, emerging colonies were isolated and subjected to phylogenetic and enzyme analyses. The phylogenetic analyses revealed bacterial and fungal isolates belonging to nine and three genera respectively. All isolates possessed cellulase activity, and several strains showed strong activity comparable to Trichoderma cellulase. Many isolates also exhibited xylanase activity.