A genome-scale metabolic reconstruction of Lysinibacillus sphaericus unveils unexploited biotechnological potentials

PLoS One. 2017 Jun 12;12(6):e0179666. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179666. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

The toxic lineage (TL) of Lysinibacillus sphaericus has been extensively studied because of its potential biotechnological applications in biocontrol of mosquitoes and bioremediation of toxic metals. We previously proposed that L. sphaericus TL should be considered as a novel species based on a comparative genomic analysis. In the current work, we constructed the first manually curated metabolic reconstruction for this species on the basis of the available genomes. We elucidated the central metabolism of the proposed species and, beyond confirming the reported experimental evidence with genomic a support, we found insights to propose novel applications and traits to be considered in further studies. The strains belonging to this lineage exhibit a broad repertory of genes encoding insecticidal factors, some of them remain uncharacterized. These strains exhibit other unexploited biotechnological important traits, such as lactonases (quorum quenching), toxic metal resistance, and potential for aromatic compound degradation. In summary, this study provides a guideline for further research aimed to implement this organism in biocontrol and bioremediation. Similarly, we highlighted the unanswered questions to be responded in order to gain a deeper understanding of the L. sphaericus TL biology.

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Infective Agents / pharmacology
  • Bacillaceae / classification
  • Bacillaceae / drug effects
  • Bacillaceae / genetics*
  • Bacillaceae / metabolism*
  • Bacterial Toxins / genetics
  • Biotechnology*
  • Carbon / metabolism
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial
  • Energy Metabolism
  • Gene Order
  • Genes, Bacterial
  • Genome, Bacterial*
  • Genomics* / methods
  • Heavy Metal Poisoning
  • Insecticides / metabolism
  • Metabolic Engineering*
  • Microbial Interactions
  • Nitrogen / metabolism
  • Nucleotide Motifs
  • Phylogeny
  • Poisoning

Substances

  • Anti-Infective Agents
  • Bacterial Toxins
  • Insecticides
  • Carbon
  • Nitrogen

Grants and funding

This project was supported by Faculty of Sciences of Universidad de los Andes. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.