Journal Article

A New Micromonospora Strain with Antibiotic Activity Isolated from the Microbiome of a Mid-Atlantic Deep-Sea Sponge

Back, Catherine R., Jepson, Mark A., Willis, Christine L., Mantell, Judith, Stach, James E. M., Ojeda Gomez, Jorge, Powell, David, Neal, Christopher, Essex-Lopresti, Angela E., Curnow, Paul, Williams, Sam E., Abdulle, Omar M., Duffy, Thomas, Race, Paul R., Hendry, Katharine R., Stennett, Henry L., Wang, Luoyi

2021

Overview

To tackle the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, it is essential to identify new bioactive compounds that are effective against resistant microbes and safe to use. Natural products and their derivatives are, and will continue to be, an important source of these molecules. Sea sponges harbour a diverse microbiome that co-exists with the sponge, and these bacterial communities produce a rich array of bioactive metabolites for protection and resource competition. For these reasons, the sponge microbiota constitutes a potential source of clinically relevant natural products. To date, efforts in bioprospecting for these compounds have focused predominantly on sponge specimens isolated from shallow water, with much still to be learned about samples from the deep sea. Here we report the isolation of a new Micromonospora strain, designated 28ISP2-46T, recovered from the microbiome of a mid-Atlantic deep-sea sponge. Whole-genome sequencing reveals the capacity of this bacterium to produce a diverse array of natural products, including kosinostatin and isoquinocycline B, which exhibit both antibiotic and antitumour properties. Both compounds were isolated from 28ISP2-46T fermentation broths and were found to be effective against a plethora of multidrug-resistant clinical isolates. This study suggests that the marine production of isoquinocyclines may be more widespread than previously supposed and demonstrates the value of targeting the deep-sea sponge microbiome as a source of novel microbial life with exploitable biosynthetic potential.

• Publisher: MDPI AG,MDPI
• Subject: Animals / Anti-Bacterial Agents - isolation & purification / Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology / antibacterial properties / antibiotic / Antibiotic resistance / Antibiotics / Anticancer properties / Antimicrobial agents / Antineoplastic Agents - isolation & purification / Antineoplastic Agents - pharmacology / Arrays / Atlantic Ocean / Bacteria / Bacterial infections / Bioactive compounds / Biological activity / Biological Products - isolation & purification / Biological Products - pharmacology / Bioprospecting / biosynthesis / Broths / Clinical isolates / Deep sea / Deep sea environments / Deep water / Disease resistance / Drug resistance / E coli / Fermentation / Gene sequencing / Genomes / Gram-positive bacteria / Harbors / Harbours / Metabolites / Microbiological strains / microbiome / Microbiomes / Microbiota / Micromonospora / Micromonospora - isolation & purification / Microorganisms / Multidrug resistance / multiple drug resistance / natural product / Natural products / Porifera - microbiology / Scanning electron microscopy / sea sponge / secondary metabolites / Shallow water / Whole Genome Sequencing