Exploring Antifouling Activity of Biosurfactants Producing Marine Bacteria Isolated from Gulf of California

Abstract

Biofouling causes major problems and economic losses to marine and shipping industries. In the search for new antifouling agents, marine bacteria with biosurfactants production capability can be an excellent option, due to the amphipathic surface-active characteristic that confers antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antifouling activity of biosurfactants producing marine bacteria from the Gulf of California. The cell free culture supernatant (CFCS) of Bacillus niabensis (S-69), Ralstonia sp. (S-74) (isolated from marine sediment) and of B. niabensis (My-30) (bacteria associated to the sponge Mycale ramulosa) were screened for production of biosurfactants (using hemolysis and drop collapse test, oil displacement and emulsifying activity). The toxicity and antifouling activity were evaluated against biofoulers (bacteria forming biofilm and macrofoulers) both in laboratory and field assays. The results indicate that all bacteria were biosurfactant producers, but the higher capability was shown by B. niabensis (My-30) with high emulsifying properties (E24) of 71%. The CFCS showed moderate toxicity but were considered non-toxic against Artemia franciscana at low concentrations. In the antifouling assay, the CFCS of both strains of B. niabensis showed the best results for the reduction of the biofilm formation (up 50%) against all Gram-positive bacteria and most Gram-negative bacteria with low concentrations. In the field assay, the CFCS of B. niabensis (My-30) led to the reduction of 30% of biofouling compared to the control. The results indicate that the biosurfactant produced by B. niabensis (My-30) has promising antifouling activity.

Antibiofilm activity of secondary metabolites of sponge-associated bacterium Alcanivorax sp. from the Red Sea

“…Also, hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester and hexadecanoic acid, ethyl ester detected respectively in AE1 and AE2 have antibiofilm potentials and are associated with biosurfactant formation in an endophytic bacterium (Ashitha et al, 2020). Biosurfactant production is an important characteristic of Alcanivorax sp., which is an essential requirement for inhibiting the biofilm formation and biofouling growth (Qiao and Shao, 2010;Alemań-Vega et al, 2020;Mishra et al, 2020). The detection of fatty acids in the extracts along with strong antibiofilm activity in this study indicated the potential of sponge-associated Alcanivorax as a good source of antibiofilm compounds.…”

Two Novel Lyso-Ornithine Lipids Isolated from an Arctic Marine Lacinutrix sp. Bacterium

“…Despite of being widely studied, with a few exceptions, the use of biosurfactants within the pharmaceutical industry is today limited. Regarding replacing biosurfactants with chemical surfactants, biosurfactants are today used in cosmetics and in food, but in other industrial applications such as bioremediation and antifouling, the research is still at laboratorial level [46,47]. However, as the research continues, that may change one day.…”

Sponges and Their Symbionts as a Source of Valuable Compounds in Cosmeceutical Field

“…Moreover, in a recent work, a bacterial strain ( Bacillus niabensis , My-30) associated to the sponge Mycale ramulosa (Gulf of California) showed a clear activity in the collapsing drop test and emulsification properties with high stability for 24 h, compared to the control (Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate, SDS). Moreover, supernatants of My-30 demonstrated a promising antifouling activity, with Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) values of 1–2% ( v/v ), against Bacillus subtilis , Micrococcus sp., and Sagittula stellata [ 88 ].…”