Cyanobacteria and Biodeterioration of Cultural Heritage: A Review
TL;DR: The development of molecular techniques for the rapid identification of cyanobacteria without need for culture and isolation is fundamental if knowledge of these communities in biofilms on the surfaces of historic buildings is to be extended.
Abstract: Growing concern for the preservation of cultural heritage has led to a greater interest in the biological attack on these buildings. The importance of cyanobacteria as deteriogens is emphasized and the traditional and more modern molecular methods used to detect these microorganisms are discussed. The development of molecular techniques for the rapid identification of cyanobacteria without need for culture and isolation is fundamental if our knowledge of these communities in biofilms on the surfaces of historic buildings is to be extended.
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TL;DR: The aim of this review is to emphasise the importance of measure as well as possible, the last stage of the biodegradation, in order to certify the integration of new materials into the biogeochemical cycles.
911 citations
Cites background from "Cyanobacteria and Biodeterioration ..."
...All these substances act as carbon and nitrogen sources, as well as growth factors for microorganisms (Crispim and Gaylarde, 2005)....
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...They can release active chemicals as nitrous acid (e.g. Nitrosomonas spp.), nitric acid (e.g. Nitrobacter spp.) or sulphuric acid (e.g. Thiobacillus spp.) (Warscheid and Braams, 2000; Roberts et al., 2002; Crispim and Gaylarde, 2005; Rubio et al., 2006)....
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TL;DR: This review organizes available information on cyanobacterial EPS, including their composition, function and factors affecting their synthesis, and from the in silico analysis of available cyanob bacterial genome sequences, proposes a putative mechanism for their biosynthesis.
Abstract: Cyanobacterial extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are mainly composed of high-molecular-mass heteropolysaccharides, with variable composition and roles according to the microorganism and the environmental conditions. The number of constituents - both saccharidic and nonsaccharidic - and the complexity of structures give rise to speculations on how intricate their biosynthetic pathways could be, and how many genes may be involved in their production. However, little is known regarding the cyanobacterial EPS biosynthetic pathways and regulating factors. This review organizes available information on cyanobacterial EPS, including their composition, function and factors affecting their synthesis, and from the in silico analysis of available cyanobacterial genome sequences, proposes a putative mechanism for their biosynthesis.
514 citations
TL;DR: A critical review of work on microbial biofilms on buildings of historic interest, including recent innovations resulting from molecular biology, is presented and microbial activities causing degradation are discussed.
Abstract: Cultural heritage monuments may be discolored and degraded by growth and activity of living organisms. Microorganisms form biofilms on surfaces of stone, with resulting aesthetic and structural damage. The organisms involved are bacteria (including actinomycetes and cyanobacteria), fungi, archaea, algae, and lichens. Interactions between these organisms and stone can enhance or retard the overall rate of degradation. Microorganisms within the stone structure (endoliths) also cause damage. They grow in cracks and pores and may bore into rocks. True endoliths, present within the rock, have been detected in calcareous and some siliceous stone monuments and are predominantly bacterial. The taxonomic groups differ from those found epilithically at the same sites. The nature of the stone substrate and the environmental conditions influence the extent of biofilm colonization and the biodeterioration processes. A critical review of work on microbial biofilms on buildings of historic interest, including recent innovations resulting from molecular biology, is presented and microbial activities causing degradation are discussed.
359 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show interesting interfaces in which scientists from different disciplines such as microbiology, engineering and art conservation can collaborate to find solutions to the problems caused by corrosion.
Abstract: Corrosion is the result of a series of chemical, physical and (micro) biological processes leading to the deterioration of materials such as steel and stone. It is a world-wide problem with great societal and economic consequences. Current corrosion control strategies based on chemically produced products are under increasing pressure of stringent environmental regulations. Furthermore, they are rather inefficient. Therefore, there is an urgent need for environmentally friendly and sustainable corrosion control strategies. The mechanisms of microbially influenced corrosion and microbially influenced corrosion inhibition are not completely understood, because they cannot be linked to a single biochemical reaction or specific microbial species or groups. Corrosion is influenced by the complex processes of different microorganisms performing different electrochemical reactions and secreting proteins and metabolites that can have secondary effects. Information on the identity and role of microbial communities that are related to corrosion and corrosion inhibition in different materials and in different environments is scarce. As some microorganisms are able to both cause and inhibit corrosion, we pay particular interest to their potential role as corrosion-controlling agents. We show interesting interfaces in which scientists from different disciplines such as microbiology, engineering and art conservation can collaborate to find solutions to the problems caused by corrosion.
255 citations
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that nif genes of the Synechococcus ecotypes are expressed in situ in a region of the mat that varies in temperature from 53.5°C to 63.4°C; transcripts are only detected at the end of the day when the mat becomes anoxic.
Abstract: Genome sequences of two Synechococcus ecotypes inhabiting the Octopus Spring microbial mat in Yellowstone National Park revealed the presence of all genes required for nitrogenase biosynthesis. We demonstrate that nif genes of the Synechococcus ecotypes are expressed in situ in a region of the mat that varies in temperature from 53.5°C to 63.4°C (average 60°C); transcripts are only detected at the end of the day when the mat becomes anoxic. Nitrogenase activity in mat samples was also detected in the evening. Hitherto, N2 fixation in hot spring mats was attributed either to filamentous cyanobacteria (not present at >50°C in these mats) or to heterotrophic bacteria. To explore how energy-generating processes of the Synechococcus ecotypes track natural light and O2 conditions, we evaluated accumulation of transcripts encoding proteins involved in photosynthesis, respiration, and fermentation. Transcripts from photosynthesis (cpcF, cpcE, psaB, and psbB) and respiration (coxA and cydA) genes declined in the evening. In contrast, transcripts encoding enzymes that may participate in fermentation fell into two categories; some (ldh, pdhB, ald, and ackA) decreased in the evening, whereas others (pflB, pflA, adhE, and acs) increased at the end of the day and remained high into the night. Energy required for N2 fixation during the night may be derived from fermentation pathways that become prominent as the mat becomes anoxic. In a broader context, our data suggest that there are critical regulatory switches in situ that are linked to the diel cycle and that these switches alter many metabolic processes within the microbial mat.
210 citations
References
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Book•
01 May 1989
TL;DR: BCL3 and Sheehy cite Bergey's manual of determinative bacteriology of which systematic bacteriology, first edition, is an expansion.
Abstract: BCL3 and Sheehy cite Bergey's manual of determinative bacteriology of which systematic bacteriology, first edition, is an expansion. With v.4 the set is complete. The volumes cover, roughly, v.1, the Gram-negatives except those in v.3 ($87.95); v.2, the Gram-positives less actinomycetes ($71.95); v.
16,172 citations
TL;DR: Revisions are designed to permit the generic identification of cultures, often difficult through use of the field-based system of phycological classification, and are both constant and readily determinable in cultured material.
Abstract: Summary: On the basis of a comparative study of 178 strains of cyanobacteria, representative of this group of prokaryotes, revised definitions of many genera are proposed. Revisions are designed to permit the generic identification of cultures, often difficult through use of the field-based system of phycological classification. The differential characters proposed are both constant and readily determinable in cultured material. The 22 genera recognized are placed in five sections, each distinguished by a particular pattern of structure and development. Generic descriptions are accompanied by strain histories, brief accounts of strain properties, and illustrations; one or more reference strains are proposed for each genus. The collection on which this analysis was based has been deposited in the American Type Culture Collection, where strains will be listed under the generic designations proposed here.
7,107 citations
"Cyanobacteria and Biodeterioration ..." refers methods in this paper
...The traditional isolation techniques were developed in the area of aquatic microbiology, extended to terrestrial habitats, and involve enrichment in liquid media, followed by isolation by means of micromanipulation or culturing on solid medium [52, 102]....
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TL;DR: The generality of the arbitrarily primed PCR method is demonstrated by application to twenty four strains from five species of Staphylococcus, eleven strains of Streptococcus pyogenes and three varieties of Oryza sativa.
Abstract: Simple and reproducible fingerprints of complex genomes can be generated using single arbitrarily chosen primers and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). No prior sequence information is required. The method, arbitrarily primed PCR (AP-PCR), involves two cycles of low stringency amplification followed by PCR at higher stringency. We show that strains can be distinguished by comparing polymorphisms in genomic fingerprints. The generality of the method is demonstrated by application to twenty four strains from five species of Staphylococcus, eleven strains of Streptococcus pyogenes and three varieties of Oryza sativa (rice).
5,472 citations
"Cyanobacteria and Biodeterioration ..." refers methods in this paper
...This approach has also been employed to identify many organisms to strain level [130, 131]....
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TL;DR: A culture-independent analysis of the composition of a well-studied hot spring microbial community, using a common but distinctive cellular component, 16S ri bosom al RNA, confirms speculations about the diversity of uncultured microorganisms it contains.
Abstract: Microbiologists have been constrained in their efforts to describe the compositions of natural microbial communities using traditional methods. Few microorganisms have sufficiently distinctive morphology to be recognized by microscopy. Culture-dependent methods are biased, as a microorganism can be cultivated only after its physiological niche is perceived and duplicated experimentally. It is therefore widely believed that fewer than 20% of the extant microorganisms have been discovered, and that culture methods are inadequate for studying microbial community composition. In view of the physiological and phylogenetic diversity among microorganisms, speculation that 80% or more of microbes remain undiscovered raises the question of how well we know the Earth's biota and its biochemical potential. We have performed a culture-independent analysis of the composition of a well-studied hot spring microbial community, using a common but distinctive cellular component, 16S ribosomal RNA. Our results confirm speculations about the diversity of uncultured microorganisms it contains.
1,391 citations
"Cyanobacteria and Biodeterioration ..." refers background in this paper
...It is apparent that many cyanobacteria species which grow in dry environments are lost in culture because of the activity of fungi, and it has been recognized that many kinds of microorganisms present in the environment are not detected by common culture techniques [124]....
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