Multiple, Novel Biologically Active Endophytic Actinomycetes Isolated from Upper Amazonian Rainforests

• Published in: Microbial ecology Vol. 58; no. 2; pp. 374 - 383
• Main Authors: Bascom-Slack, Carol A, Ma, Cong, Moore, Emily, Babbs, Beatrice, Fenn, Kathleen, Greene, Joshua S, Hann, Bradley D, Keehner, Jocelyn, Kelley-Swift, Elizabeth G, Kembaiyan, Vivek, Lee, Sun Jin, Li, Puyao, Light, David Y, Lin, Emily H, Schorn, Michelle A, Vekhter, Daniel, Boulanger, Lori-Ann, Hess, W. M, Vargas, Percy Núñez, Strobel, Gary A, Strobel, Scott A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York New York : Springer-Verlag 01.08.2009; Springer Science + Business Media, Inc; Springer-Verlag; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Actinobacteria - classification; Actinobacteria - genetics; Actinobacteria - isolation & purification; Actinobacteria - ultrastructure; Actinomycetes; Antibiosis; Biodiversity; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; DNA, Ribosomal - genetics; Ecology; Endosymbionts; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Fungi; Geoecology/Natural Processes; Life Sciences; Microbial Ecology; Microbiology; Microorganisms; Molecular Sequence Data; Nature Conservation; Peru; Phylogeny; Plant growth; Plant Microbe Interactions; Plants; Rainforests; Ribosomal DNA; RNA, Bacterial - genetics; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Streptomyces; Streptomycetes; Test organisms; Trees - microbiology; Tropical Climate; Tropical rain forests; Water Quality/Water Pollution; South America; Peru; America; Endophytic Actinomycete; Trichoderma Viride; Test Organism; Actinomycete Isolate; Verticillium; Microbiology; Tropical zone; Rain forest; Ribosomal DNA; Ecology; Biodiversity; Climatic zone; Stem; Fungi; Bacteria; Endophyte; Isolate; Actinomycetes; Activity spectrum
• ISSN: 0095-3628; 1432-184X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00248-009-9494-z

Microbial biodiversity provides an increasingly important source of medically and industrially useful compounds. We have isolated 14 actinomycete species from a collection of approximately 300 plant stem samples from the upper Amazonian rainforest in Peru. All of the cultured isolates produce substances with inhibitory activity directed at a range of potential fungal and bacterial pathogens. For some organisms, this activity is very broad in spectrum while other organisms show specific activity against a limited number of organisms. Two of these organisms preferentially inhibit bacterial test organisms over eukaryotic organisms. rDNA sequence analysis indicates that these organisms are not equivalent to any other cultured deposits in GenBank. Our results provide evidence of the untapped biodiversity in the form of biologically active microbes present within the tissues of higher plants.