A petroleum-contaminated mangrove bacterial consortium from Baia de Todos os Santos, Brazil, reported as a 36-organism consortium and represented by nine selected Bacillus, Brevibacillus, Pseudomonas, and Stenotrophomonas isolates. de Santana Nazare et al. sequenced and compared the nine isolates, grew them in Bushnell-Haas broth with paraffinic crude oil, and found that the complete consortium was required for statistically significant intermediate n-alkane degradation while Pseudomonas/Stenotrophomonas and Bacillus members occupied rapid and delayed alkane-degradation roles.
Taxonomy
| Taxon | Ontology ID | Functional Roles | Abundance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bacillus sp. RB4 — ontology label: Bacillus sp. 'Bacillus M3' | NCBITaxon:427562 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Bacillus sp. OH4 — ontology label: Bacillus sp. 'Bacillus M3' | NCBITaxon:427562 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Brevibacillus sp. RC5 — ontology label: Brevibacillus | NCBITaxon:55080 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Pseudomonas sp. RA2 — ontology label: Pseudomonas | NCBITaxon:286 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Pseudomonas sp. PD6 — ontology label: Pseudomonas | NCBITaxon:286 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Pseudomonas sp. PD7 — ontology label: Pseudomonas | NCBITaxon:286 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Stenotrophomonas sp. RC6 — ontology label: Stenotrophomonas | NCBITaxon:40323 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Stenotrophomonas sp. PD5 — ontology label: Stenotrophomonas | NCBITaxon:40323 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Stenotrophomonas sp. PD8 — ontology label: Stenotrophomonas | NCBITaxon:40323 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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Ecological Interactions
The graph shows only explicitly linked interaction participants. Community members without an asserted participant link are omitted; membership alone does not imply an interaction.
Complete-consortium intermediate alkane synergy
The source reports greater intermediate C15-C28 alkane removal by the complete consortium than selected isolates, using a consortium baseline from previous standardized experiments. Each treatment used one batch reactor; alkane chains used as statistical replicates are not independent biological replicates. PARTIAL - byproduct cascades and avoidance of toxic intermediates are proposed explanations, not measured transfer or reciprocal member fitness. GC-FID disappearance does not establish complete mineralization, and late heavy-fraction OH4 removal could exceed the consortium.
Metabolites: alkane (CHEBI:18310 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- alkane catabolic process (GO:0043448 · PathwayMech)
Evidence
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PMID:41893893 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"The microbial consortium proved to be the only treatment capable of promoting statistically significant degradation"
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PMID:41893893 - PARTIAL (IN_VITRO)"cooperative action allows for the cascading utilization of byproducts"
Rapid and delayed alkane-degradation partitioning
NICHE_PARTITIONINGPARTIAL - isolate time profiles and alkB annotation suggest rapid Pseudomonas/Stenotrophomonas and delayed OH4 roles. NICHE_PARTITIONING denotes the authors' proposed temporal specialization, not measured succession or reduced competition inside the consortium. The nine selected isolates are representatives of a 36-organism parent; gene presence is capacity, not expression or proven pathway flux.
Participating Taxa: Pseudomonas sp. PD6, Stenotrophomonas sp. RC6, Stenotrophomonas sp. PD5, Bacillus sp. OH4
Metabolites: alkane (CHEBI:18310 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- alkane catabolic process (GO:0043448 · PathwayMech)
Evidence
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PMID:41893893 - SUPPORT (COMPUTATIONAL)"The lineages of the Pseudomonas and Stenotrophomonas genera (PD5, PD6, RC6) were highlighted, due to the presence of alkB"
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PMID:41893893 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"strain OH4 (Bacillus sp.) served as the primary representative of a distinct metabolic group characterized by a delayed degradation profile"
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PMID:41893893 - PARTIAL (IN_VITRO)"driven by rapid degraders such as Pseudomonas and Stenotrophomonas, followed by a late-stage degradation phase sustained by genera like Bacillus"
Knowledge gaps & discussions (2)
KNOWLEDGE_GAP OPEN Which additional 27 organisms make up the patented Baia de Todos os Santos alkane-degrading consortium?
The article states that its nine selected strains came from a 36-organism consortium, but Table 1 identifies only the nine isolates chosen for genomic analysis; the remaining consortium members were not resolved in the article text, PMC XML, Springer HTML, or full-size Table 1 page inspected here.
Attaches to: taxonomy
KNOWLEDGE_GAP OPEN Do replicated defined-consortium experiments establish the proposed temporal roles and byproduct cascades?
Independent reactor replication, contemporaneous complete membership, mass-balance/recovery controls and partner-resolved flux or fitness are needed to distinguish mechanisms. Negative apparent degradation was clipped to zero; sampling heterogeneity and biofilm sequestration are proposed explanations. Earlier baseline study, source figure/table images and supplements were not reviewed. Preserve the bounded unresolved-members discussion and RA2 grounding note.
Attaches to: ecological_interactions#Complete-consortium intermediate alkane synergy, ecological_interactions#Rapid and delayed alkane-degradation partitioning
External Resources
| Name | Repository | Resource ID |
|---|---|---|
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Primary publication - Baia de Todos os Santos mangrove alkane consortium
Primary genomic and geochemical study of the mangrove-derived alkane-degrading consortium. |
OTHER | PMID:41893893 |
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Environmental Factors
| Factor | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Paraffinic crude-oil source | 3 | g per flask |
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| Total petroleum hydrocarbon degradation | 47.76 | average percent over 31 days |
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| Intermediate n-alkane degradation | 52.24 | percent in first 16 days |
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Growth Media
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