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Lookup NU author(s): Professor Colin Harwood, Dr Susanne Pohl
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Members of the “B. subtilis group” include some of the most commercially important bacteria, used for the production of a wide range of industrial enzymes and fine biochemicals. Increasingly, group members have been developed for use as animal feed enhancers and antifungal biocontrol agents. The group have long been recognized to produce a range of secondary metabolites and, despite their long history of safe usage, this has resulted in an increased focus on their safety. Traditional methods used to detect the production of secondary metabolites and other potentially harmful compounds have relied on phenotypic tests. Such approaches are time-consuming and, in some cases, lack specificity. Nowadays, accessibility to genome data and associated bioinformatical tools provides a powerful means for identifying gene clusters associated with the synthesis of secondary metabolites. This review focuses primarily on well-characterised strains of B. subtilis and B. licheniformis and their synthesis of non-ribosomally synthesised peptides (NRP) and polyketides (PK). Where known, the activities and toxicities of their secondary metabolites are discussed, together with the limitations of assays currently used to assess their toxicity. Finally, the regulatory framework under which such strains are authorized for use in the production of food and feed enzymes is also reviewed.
Author(s): Harwood CR, Bouillon JM, Pohl S, Arnau J
Publication type: Review
Publication status: Published
Journal: FEMS Microbiology Reviews
Year: 2018
Volume: 42
Issue: 6
Pages: 721-738
Print publication date: 01/11/2018
Online publication date: 19/07/2018
Acceptance date: 17/07/2018
ISSN (print): 0168-6445
ISSN (electronic): 1574-6976
Publisher: Oxford University Press
URL: https://doi.org/10.1093/femsre/fuy028
DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuy028
