title: Diversity and chemical defense role of culturable non-actinobacterial bacteria isolated from the South China Sea gorgonians.
abstract: The diversity of culturable non-actinobacterial (NA) bacteria associated with four species of South China Sea gorgonians was investigated using culture-dependent methods followed by analysis of the bacterial 16S rDNA sequence. A total of 76 bacterial isolates were recovered and identified, which belonged to 21 species of 7 genera, and Bacillus was the most diverse genus. Fifty-one percent of the 76 isolates displayed antibacterial activities, and most of them belonged to the Bacillus genus. From the culture broth of gorgonian-associated Bacillus methylotrophicus SCSGAB0092 isolated from gorgonian Melitodes squamata, 11 antimicrobial lipopeptides including seven surfactins and four iturins were obtained. These results imply that Bacillus strains associated with gorgonians play roles in coral defense mechanisms through producing antimicrobial substances. This study, for the first time, compares the diversity of culturable NA bacterial communities among four species of South China Sea gorgonians and investigates the secondary metabolites of gorgonian-associated B. methylotrophicus SCSGAB0092.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Marine Bio-resources Sustainable Utilization, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Marine Material Medical, RNAM Center for Marine Microbiology, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510301, China.
authors.forename: Jiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Xiaoyong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xinya
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Shuhua
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Qi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa / Q000382:microbiology*; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000378:metabolism; D059001:Aquatic Organisms / Q000382:microbiology*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D044822:Biodiversity; D002681:China; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D055666:Lipopeptides / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D012623:Seawater; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D055666:Lipopeptides; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S