The little things that matter: how bioprospecting microbial biodiversity can build towards the realization of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Vuong, Paton; Chong, Sandy; Kaur, Parwinder

doi:10.1038/s44185-022-00006-y

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Microbial CCs and mBRCs can not only facilitate scientific research by enhancing the conservation, preservation, and characterisation of microbial resources and promoting human and environmental well-being via the industrial biotechnological exploitation of microbial potential, but can also be extremely useful in tackling the major global challenges facing our planet and in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals [81,82].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Treasures of Italian Microbial Culture Collections: An Overview of Preserved Biological Resources, Offered Services and Know-How, and Management

Moretti,

Tartaglia,

Accotto

et al. 2024

Sustainability

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Microorganisms, microbiomes, and their products (e.g., enzymes, metabolites, antibiotics, etc.) are key players in the functioning of both natural and anthropized Earth ecosystems; they can be exploited for both research purposes and biotechnological applications, including fighting the big challenges of our era, such as climate change. Culture collections (CCs) and microbial Biological Resource Centres (mBRCs) are repositories of microorganisms that investigate and safeguard biodiversity and facilitate the scientific and industrial communities’ access to microbial strains and related know-how by providing external users with skills and services. Considering this, CCs and mBRCs are pivotal institutions for the valorisation of microorganisms, the safeguarding of life, and the fostering of excellent bioscience. The aim of this review is to present the state-of-the-art of Italian CCs and mBRCs, highlighting strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities. Italy is, indeed, a hotspot of microbial biodiversity with a high rate of endemism and incredible potential, not only for the food and beverage sector (i.e., “Made in Italy” products), where microorganisms can have a beneficial or a spoiling function, but also to guarantee environmental sustainability and foster the bioeconomy through the design of new bioprocesses and products. However, weaknesses, such as the lack of management rules in accordance with international quality standards, are also analysed and ways of overcoming them are discussed. In this context, an overview is given of the Joint Research Unit MIRRI-IT and the European-funded SUS-MIRRI.IT project, which aims to improve the management and sustainability of Italian microbial collections, and serves as a starting point for an innovative revolution in the context of CCs and mBRCs worldwide.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Treasures of Italian Microbial Culture Collections: An Overview of Preserved Biological Resources, Offered Services and Know-How, and Management

Moretti,

Tartaglia,

Accotto

et al. 2024

Sustainability

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“…Ethical issues regarding environmental and socioeconomic sustainability also arise from approaches motivated by drug‐discovery, as do concerns regarding the ethics of intellectual property (Castree, 2003; Rose et al, 2012). While the exploration of natural resources has the potential to identify solutions to problems arising from climate change and shifts in socioeconomic needs (Purkayastha, 2016; Vuong et al, 2022), it is essential that bioprospecting be accompanied by safeguards to ensure environmental responsibility and protection of intellectual property rights. For example, the patenting of natural products used in traditional medicine systems has been argued to infringe upon the intellectual property rights of indigenous people and incentivises the commoditisation of natural resources which can lead to environmental exploitation or damage (Das, 2020; McGonigle, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Criteria for the selection, evaluation and application of traditional knowledge in contemporary health practice, education, research and policy: A systematic review

Foley,

Bugarcic,

Adams

et al. 2023

Health Info Libraries J

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BackgroundTraditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) is highly utilised and draws on traditional knowledge (TK) as evidence, raising a need to explore how TK is currently used.ObjectivesExamine criteria used to select, evaluate and apply TK in contemporary health contexts.MethodsSystematic search utilising academic databases (AMED, CINAHL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, SSCI, ProQuest Dissertations Theses Global), Trip clinical database and Google search engine. Citations and reference lists of included articles were searched. Reported use of TK in contemporary settings was mapped against a modified ‘Exploration‐Preparation‐Implementation‐Sustainment’ (EPIS) implementation framework.ResultsFrom the 54 included articles, EPIS mapping found TK is primarily used in the Exploration phase of implementation (n = 54), with little reporting on Preparation (n = 16), Implementation process (n = 6) or Sustainment (n = 4) of TK implementation. Criteria used in selection, evaluation and application of TK commonly involved validation with other scientific/traditional evidence sources, or assessment of factors influencing knowledge translation.DiscussionOne of the difficulties in validation of TK (as a co‐opted treatment) against other evidence sources is comparing like with like as TK often takes a holistic approach. This complicates further planning and evaluation of implementation.ConclusionThis review identifies important criteria for evaluating current and potential contemporary use of TK, identifying gaps in research and practice for finding, appraising and applying relevant TK studies for clinical care.

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“…Phototropic microbes such as chlorophyta and cyanobacteria may become an alternative chassis, boosting metabolite production, and conserving the environment at the same time. Notably, the use of these species are potentially beneficial to the environment on account of their capacity to act as carbon-sinks and wastewater remediators, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Developments Goals (Vuong et al, 2022a). Efforts should be implemented to develop more engineering tools for algal species.…”

Section: Challenges and Prospectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioprospecting microbes and enzymes for the production of pterocarpans and coumestans

Rojo

Pillow

Kaur

2023

Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol.

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The isoflavonoid derivatives, pterocarpans and coumestans, are explored for multiple clinical applications as osteo-regenerative, neuroprotective and anti-cancer agents. The use of plant-based systems to produce isoflavonoid derivatives is limited due to cost, scalability, and sustainability constraints. Microbial cell factories overcome these limitations in which model organisms such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae offer an efficient platform to produce isoflavonoids. Bioprospecting microbes and enzymes can provide an array of tools to enhance the production of these molecules. Other microbes that naturally produce isoflavonoids present a novel alternative as production chassis and as a source of novel enzymes. Enzyme bioprospecting allows the complete identification of the pterocarpans and coumestans biosynthetic pathway, and the selection of the best enzymes based on activity and docking parameters. These enzymes consolidate an improved biosynthetic pathway for microbial-based production systems. In this review, we report the state-of-the-art for the production of key pterocarpans and coumestans, describing the enzymes already identified and the current gaps. We report available databases and tools for microbial bioprospecting to select the best production chassis. We propose the use of a holistic and multidisciplinary bioprospecting approach as the first step to identify the biosynthetic gaps, select the best microbial chassis, and increase productivity. We propose the use of microalgal species as microbial cell factories to produce pterocarpans and coumestans. The application of bioprospecting tools provides an exciting field to produce plant compounds such as isoflavonoid derivatives, efficiently and sustainably.

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The little things that matter: how bioprospecting microbial biodiversity can build towards the realization of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Cited by 11 publications

References 34 publications

Treasures of Italian Microbial Culture Collections: An Overview of Preserved Biological Resources, Offered Services and Know-How, and Management

Treasures of Italian Microbial Culture Collections: An Overview of Preserved Biological Resources, Offered Services and Know-How, and Management

Criteria for the selection, evaluation and application of traditional knowledge in contemporary health practice, education, research and policy: A systematic review

Bioprospecting microbes and enzymes for the production of pterocarpans and coumestans

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