title: Phenotypic and genomic characterization of the antimicrobial producer Rheinheimera sp. EpRS3 isolated from the medicinal plant Echinacea purpurea: insights into its biotechnological relevance.
abstract: In recent years, there has been increasing interest in plant microbiota; however, despite medicinal plant relevance, very little is known about their highly complex endophytic communities. In this work, we report on the genomic and phenotypic characterization of the antimicrobial compound producer Rheinheimera sp. EpRS3, a bacterial strain isolated from the rhizospheric soil of the medicinal plant Echinacea purpurea. In particular, EpRS3 is able to inhibit growth of different bacterial pathogens (Bcc, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Klebsiella pneumoniae) which might be related to the presence of gene clusters involved in the biosynthesis of different types of secondary metabolites. The outcomes presented in this work highlight the fact that the strain possesses huge biotechnological potential; indeed, it also shows antimicrobial effects upon well-described multidrug-resistant (MDR) human pathogens, and it affects plant root elongation and morphology, mimicking indole acetic acid (IAA) action.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Luana
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Presta
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Emanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bosi
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fondi
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Maida
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Perrin
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Elisangela
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Miceli
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy; Center for Integrative Medicine, Careggi University Hospital, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Maggini
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bogani
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Medicine, Careggi University Hospital, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Firenzuoli
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Translational Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Di Pilato
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Biotechnologies, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy; Clinical Microbiology and Virology Unit, Careggi University Hospital, Florence, Italy; Don Carlo Gnocchi Foundation, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: Gian Maria
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Rossolini
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mengoni
authors.affiliation: Dept of Biology, University of Florence, Via Madonna del Piano 6, I-50019 Sesto F.no, FI, Italy. Electronic address: renato.fani@unifi.it.
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fani
mesh_terms: D040981:Acinetobacter baumannii / Q000254:growth & development; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D000898:Antibiosis; D001709:Biotechnology; D016956:Burkholderia cepacia / Q000254:growth & development; D020900:Echinacea / Q000382:microbiology*; D060026:Endophytes / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005578:Fosfomycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D020563:Gammaproteobacteria / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D023281:Genomics; D007210:Indoleacetic Acids / Q000378:metabolism; D007711:Klebsiella pneumoniae / Q000254:growth & development; D010641:Phenotype; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000382:microbiology; D010946:Plants, Medicinal / Q000382:microbiology; D058441:Rhizosphere
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D007210:Indoleacetic Acids; D005578:Fosfomycin; C030737:indoleacetic acid
keywords: Antibiotic production; Antibiotic resistance; Biotechnological applications; Endophytes; Genome analysis