Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-rcrh6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T03:12:07.010Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Screening fungi isolated from historic Discovery Hut on Ross Island, Antarctica for cellulose degradation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2008

Shona M. Duncan ,
Ryuji Minasaki ,
Roberta L. Farrell ,
Joanne M. Thwaites ,
Benjamin W. Held ,
Brett E. Arenz ,
Joel A. Jurgens  and
Robert A. Blanchette
Shona M. Duncan*
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Ryuji Minasaki
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Roberta L. Farrell
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Joanne M. Thwaites
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Waikato, Private Bag 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand
Benjamin W. Held
Affiliation:
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA
Brett E. Arenz
Affiliation:
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA
Joel A. Jurgens
Affiliation:
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA
Robert A. Blanchette
Affiliation:
Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN 55108, USA
*
*[email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

To survive in Antarctica, early explorers of Antarctica's Heroic Age erected wooden buildings and brought in large quantities of supplies. The introduction of wood and other organic materials may have provided new nutrient sources for fungi that were indigenous to Antarctica or were brought in with the materials. From 30 samples taken from Discovery Hut, 156 filamentous fungi were isolated on selective media. Of these, 108 were screened for hydrolytic activity on carboxymethyl cellulose, of which 29 demonstrated activities. Endo-1, 4-β-glucanase activity was confirmed in the extracellular supernatant from seven isolates when grown at 4°C, and also when they were grown at 15°C. Cladosporium oxysporum and Geomyces sp. were shown to grow on a variety of synthetic cellulose substrates and to use cellulose as a nutrient source at temperate and cold temperatures. The research findings from the present study demonstrate that Antarctic filamentous fungi isolated from a variety of substrates (wood, straw, and food stuffs) are capable of cellulose degradation and can grow well at low temperatures.

Keywords

cellulolyticendo-14-β-glucanasemicrofungipsychrotolerant
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 20 , Issue 5 , October 2008 , pp. 463 - 470
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2008

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abyzoz, S.S. 1993. Microorganisms in the Antarctic ice. In Friedman, E.I., ed. Antarctic microbiology. New York: Wiley-Liss, 265–295.Google Scholar
Arenz, B.E., Held, B.W., Jurgens, J.A., Farrell, R.L. & Blanchette, R.A. 2006. Fungal diversity in soils and historic wood from the Ross Sea Region of Antarctica. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 38, 3057–3064.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Azmi, O.R. & Seppelt, R.D. 1997. Fungi of the Windmill Islands, continental Antarctica: effect of temperature, pH and culture media on the growth of selected microfungi. Polar Biology, 18, 128–134.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bailey, M.J., Biely, P. & Poutanen, K. 1992. Interlaboratory testing of method for assay of xylanase activity. Journal of Biotechnology, 23, 257–270.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barnett, H.L. & Hunter, B.B. 1972. Illustrated genera of imperfect fungi. Minneapolis, MN: Burgess, 241 pp.Google Scholar
Blanchette, R.A., Held, B.W., Jurgens, J.A., McNew, D.L., Harrington, T.C., Duncan, S.M. & Farrell, R.L. 2004. Wood-destroying soft rot fungi in the historic expedition huts of Antarctica. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 70, 1328–1335.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bradner, J.R., Gillings, M. & Nevalainen, K.M.H. 1999. Qualitative assessment of hydrolytic activities in Antarctic microfungi grown at different temperatures on solid media. World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology, 15, 131–132.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cavicchioli, R.K., Siddiqui, S., Andrews, D. & Sowers, K.R. 2002. Low-temperature extremophiles and their applications. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 13, 1–9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Duncan, S.M., Farrell, R.L., Thwaites, J.M., Held, B.W., Arenz, B.E., Jurgens, J.A. & Blanchette, R.A. 2006. Endoglucanase producing fungi isolated from Cape Evans historic expedition hut on Ross Island, Antarctica. Environmental Microbiology, 8, 1212–1219.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eriksson, K.E., Blanchette, R.A. & Ander, P. 1990. Microbial and enzymatic degradation of wood and wood components. Berlin: Springer, 407 pp.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fenice, M., Selbmann, L., Zucconi, L. & Onofri, S. 1997. Production of extracellular enzymes by Antarctic fungal strains. Polar Biology, 17, 275–280.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gardes, M. & Bruns, T.D. 1993. ITS primers with enhanced specificity of basidiomycetes: application to the identification of mycorrhizae and rusts. Molecular Ecology, 2, 113–118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrington, T.C. 1981. Cycloheximide sensitivity as a taxonomic character in Ceratocystis. Mycologia, 73, 1123–1129.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrington, T.C. & McNew, D.L. 2003. Phylogenetic analysis places the Phialophora-like anamorph genus Cadophora in the Helotiales. Mycotaxon, 87, 141–151.Google Scholar
Held, B.W., Jurgens, J.A., Arenz, B.E., Duncan, S.M., Farrell, R.L. & Blanchette, R.A. 2005. Environmental factors influencing microbial growth inside the historic expedition huts of Ross Island, Antarctica. International Biodeterioration and Biodegradation, 55, 45–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hurst, J.L., Pugh, G.J.F. & Walton, D.W.H. 1983. Fungal succession and substrate utilization on the leaves of three South Georgia phanerogams. British Antarctica Survey Bulletin, No. 58, 89–100.Google Scholar
Kerry, E. 1990a. Microorganisms colonizing plants and soil subjected to different degrees of human activity, including petroleum contamination, in the Vestfold Hills and MacRobertson Land, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 10, 423–430.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kerry, E. 1990b. Effect of temperature on growth rates of fungi from Subantarctic Macquarie Island and Casey, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 10, 293–299.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mandels, M.L., Parrish, F.W. & Reese, E.T. 1962. Sophorose as an inducer of cellulose in Trichoderma viride. Journal of Bacteriology, 83, 400–408.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mercantini, R., Marsella, R., Moretto, D. & Finotti, E. 1993. Keratinophilic fungi in the Antarctic environment. Mycopathologia, 122 169–175.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Meyer, G.H., Morrow, M.B. & Wyss, O. 1962. Viable micro-organisms in a fifty-year old yeast preparation in Antarctica. Nature, 196, 598.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Meyer, G.H., Morrow, M.B. & Wyss, O. 1963. Viable organisms from faeces and foodstuffs from early Antarctic expeditions. Canadian Journal of Microbiology, 9, 163–167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nedwell, D.B., Russell, N.J. & Cresswell-Maynard, T. 1994. Long-term survival of microorganisms in frozen material from early Antarctic base camps at McMurdo Sound. Antarctic Science, 6, 67–68.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Onofri, S., Selbmann, L., Zucconi, L. & Pagano, S. 2004. Antarctic microfungi as model exobiology. Planetary and Space Science, 52, 229–237.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pugh, G.J.F. & Allsopp, D. 1982. Microfungi on Signy Island, South Orkney Islands. British Antarctic Survey Bulletin, No. 57, 55–67.Google Scholar
Smith, M.J. 1981. Cellulose decomposition on South Georgia. British Antarctic Survey Bulletin, No. 53, 264–265.Google Scholar
Sun, S.H., Huppert, M. & Cameron, R.E. 1978. Identification of some fungi from soil and air of Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, 30, 1–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vincent, W.F. 2000. Evolutionary origins of Antarctic microbiota: invasion, selection and endemism. Antarctic Science, 12, 374–385.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vishniac, H.S. 1996. Biodiversity of yeasts and filamentous fungi in terrestrial Antarctic ecosystems. Biodiversity and Conservation, 5, 1365–1378.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vogel, H.J. & Bonner, D.M. 1956. A convenient growth medium for E. coli and some other microorganisms. Journal of Biology and Chemistry, 218, 97–106.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Walton, D.W.H. 1985. Cellulose decomposition and its relationship to nutrient cycling at South Georgia. In Siegfried, W.R., Condy, P.R. & Laws, R.M., eds. Antarctic nutrient cycles and food webs. Berlin: Springer, 192–199.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yamamoto, H., Ohtani, S., Tatsuyama, K. & Akiyama, M. 1991. Preliminary report on cellulolytic activity in the Antarctic region (extended Abstract). Proceedings of the NIPR Symposium on Polar Biology, 4, 179–182.Google Scholar