title: Recognition of greater diversity of Bacillus species and related bacteria in human faeces.
abstract: In a study looking at culturable aerobic Actinobacteria associated with the human gastrointestinal tract, the vast majority of isolates obtained from dried human faeces belonged to the genus Bacillus and related bacteria. A total of 124 isolates were recovered from the faeces of 10 healthy adult donors. 16S rRNA gene sequence analyses showed the majority belonged to the families Bacillaceae (n=81) and Paenibacillaceae (n=3), with Bacillus species isolated from all donors. Isolates tentatively identified as Bacillus clausii (n=32) and Bacillus licheniformis (n=28) were recovered most frequently, with the genera Lysinibacillus, Ureibacillus, Oceanobacillus, Ornithinibacillus and Virgibacillus represented in some donors. Phenotypic data confirmed the identities of isolates belonging to well-characterized species. Representatives of the phylum Actinobacteria were recovered in much lower numbers (n=11). Many of the bacilli exhibited antimicrobial activity against one or more strains of Clostridium difficile, Clostridium perfringens, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus, with some (n=12) found to have no detectable cytopathic effect on HEp-2 cells. This study has revealed greater diversity within gut-associated aerobic spore-formers than previous studies, and suggests that bacilli with potential as probiotics could be isolated from the human gut.
authors: Microbial Ecology and Health Group, Food Microbial Sciences Unit, Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AP, Berkshire, UK. lesley.hoyles@reading.ac.uk
authors: Lesley
authors: L
authors: Hoyles
authors: Harue
authors: H
authors: Honda
authors: Niall A
authors: NA
authors: Logan
authors: Gillian
authors: G
authors: Halket
authors: Roberto M
authors: RM
authors: La Ragione
authors: Anne L
authors: AL
authors: McCartney
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001407:Bacillus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D044822:Biodiversity; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S