Identification of Microorganisms Dwelling on the 19th Century Lanna Mural Paintings from Northern Thailand Using Culture-Dependent and -Independent Approaches

Abstract

Lanna painting is a unique type of painting in many temples in the Northern Thai region. Similar to most mural paintings, they usually decay over time partly due to the activity of microbes. This study aimed to investigate the microorganisms from two Lanna masterpiece paintings in two temples that differ in the numbers of visitors using both culture-dependent and -independent approaches. The microorganisms isolated from the murals were also tested for the biodeterioration activities including discoloration, acid production and calcium precipitation. Most microorganisms extracted from the paintings were able to discolor the paints, but only fungi were able to discolor, produce acids and precipitate calcium. The microorganism communities, diversity and functional prediction were also investigated using the culture-independent method. The diversity of microorganisms and functional prediction were different between the two temples. Gammaproteobacteria was the predominant group of bacteria in both temples. However, the fungal communities were different between the two temples as Aspergillus was the most abundant genus in the site with higher number of visitors [Buak Krok Luang temple (BK)]. Conversely, mural paintings at Tha Kham temple (TK) were dominated by the Neodevriesia genera. We noticed that a high number of visitors (Buak Krok Luang) was correlated with microbial contamination from humans while the microbial community at Tha Kham temple had a higher proportion of saprotrophs. These results could be applied to formulate a strategy to mitigate the amount of tourists as well as manage microorganism to slow down the biodeterioration process.

Black Fungi and Stone Heritage Conservation: Ecological and Metabolic Assays for Evaluating Colonization Potential and Responses to Traditional Biocides

“…The metabolic features highlighted here support the well-known yet rarely applied practice of removing the organic matter from monuments to prevent fungal growth [82]. The production of esterases and caseinases activities suggests as these strains may also feed on wall paintings where oils and proteinaceous binders were used as already reported [83][84][85][86]. Furthermore, the inhibition halo (competition for space) produced by two Knufia species (namely K. petricola and K. mediterranea) against a cladosporiacean plate contaminant, provided evidence that some BF species in peculiar conditions (PSAM test) can compete, more than expected [87][88][89], against high sporulating fungi.…”

The Characterization of Microbiome and Interactions on Weathered Rocks in a Subsurface Karst Cave, Central China

“…The species Penicillium janczewskii is characterized by habitation in dry substrates depleted in organic matter, which is partially consistent with its presence in the cave ( Mazina et al, 2020 ). Neodevriesia (2.37%) was reported as a dominant group on mural paintings in North Thai temples ( Suphaphimol et al, 2022 ).…”

Reducing the biogenic corrosion of concrete in a pigsty by using disinfectants

“…The formation of citrate (citric) acid (Fig. 3, b) is especially characteristic of micromycetes Aspergillus [20] and Penicillium [30].…”

“…Cultivation of microorganisms was performed on elective media, taking into consideration species. The cultivation of microscopic fungi was carried out on the Čapek-Dox medium [20].…”