Evaluation of the Marine Bacterial Population in the Great Bitter Lake, Egypt, as a Source of Antimicrobial Secondary Metabolites

The ecological uniqueness of the Great Bitter Lake ecosystem makes its bacterial population interesting for investigation. Here, we present the first trial to evaluate the biosynthetic capacity of the bacterial population at the lake as a source of novel antimicrobials. We collected different samples from various locations throughout the lake including the oxic sediment, anoxic sediment, shore water, and off-shore water. We modified a molecular approach to compare and choose the samples with the highest bacterial biosynthetic capacity by quantifying the polyketide synthase gene clusters in their total community DNA. Furthermore, we screened the bacterial isolates recovered from these samples and their metabolic extracts for antimicrobial activity. We tried to tentatively investigate the identity of the active metabolites by PCR screening and LC-MS. The bacterial population in the oxic sediment had the highest biosynthetic capacity compared to other sample types. Four active Bacillus isolates were identified. The isolated Bacillus species were expected to produce numerous probable bioactive metabolites encoded by biosynthetic gene clusters related to the polyketide synthases (either individual or hybrid with non-ribosomal peptide synthetase), such as Bacillomycin D, Iturin A, Bacilosarcin B, Bacillcoumacin G and Macrolactin (N and G). These results suggest that the under-explored bacterial community of the Great Bitter Lake has a prospective biosynthetic capacity and can be a promising source for novel antibiotics.

Automated summary

This study evaluated the biosynthetic capacity of the bacterial population in the Great Bitter Lake ecosystem as a potential source of novel antimicrobials. Through sample collection and selection, the bacterial population in the oxic sediment was found to have the highest biosynthetic capacity. Four active Bacillus isolates were identified, which are expected to produce probable bioactive metabolites. The under-explored bacterial community of the lake shows promise as a source of novel antibiotics.